Chook Me!

Have it ever occur to the world that bird flu comes not only from poultry but also birds that flies?

All over the place where bird flu is concerned, people tend to cull the poultry that they rear...as far as i know...birds means... all birds....ducks, pigeons, sparrows, chickens, parrots.....etcs....and if the disease can be transmited to humans... it can too tru air...since it is a disease... or am i wrong?

Public Comments

1. Yeah, they cull the domestic birds in the hopes that it will stop the disease from spreading to wild populations. They are thinking of wild populations getting it and spreading it when they cull.
2. humans, so far, only die when in close contact with birds for a long time. Like if you work on a chicken farm, or keep them in your back yard. So wild populations are less of a threat to humans. there have been efforts made to contain wild populations, but the ecological impact of stopping birds from migrating is huge.
3. Here's the answer that I gave to someone else who was asking about bird flu, either it will make you feel better or scare the crap out of you. Hope it helps: There are three types of influenza, types A, B, and C. Type A is capable of causing epidemics and pandemics, type B can cause epidemics, and type C only causes mild illness. So: The influenza virus is an enveloped virus and it takes its envelope covering from our own cells. On its surface it has two proteins, NA and HA. This is how the strains are determined using the H and N. The H protein goes under antigenic shift means that it can drastically change, the N protein undergoes drift meaning subtle changes. The major pandemics/epidemics are as follows: 1918--H1N1--Spanish flu killed over 100 million people 1957--H2N2--Asian flu killed ~70 million in the US 1968--H3N2--Hong Kong flu killed ~34 thousand in the US 1997--H5N1--bird (avian) flu showed up in Hong Kong, all chickens were slaughtered. In 2003 it shows up again in chickens as well as other birds, 2 people died after being infected, millions of birds killed 1999--H9N2--shows up in Hong Kong, 2 children infected but live, ducks and chickens slaughtered in response 2003--H7N7--shows up in the Netherlands, was extremely virulent and killed off all poultry--evidence of swine infection observed 1994--H7N2--shows up in New York in bird markets and spreads to commercial poultry H7N3 shows up and is only lethal in chickens and turkeys 2004--H5N1--avian flu shows up again So, on to the pig-bird connection: birds have an alpha 2-3 binding ability for the virus, humans have an alpha 2-6 ability. Pigs however have both. So, if the virus goes from a bird (with an alpha 2-3 binding ability) into a pig (with both alpha 2-3 and alpha 2-6) the virus can mutate within the pig to utilize an alpha 2-6 affinity. Therefore the H5N1 avian flu can go from a bird, to a pig, then on to a human very easilly. Now you may be thinking how often do pigs and chickens really hang out? Well, in Asia (where most of the new flu strains originate) pigs are often raised along with chickens for economic reasons. So therefore, it is entirely possible that the flu virus will mutate sometime in the near future and create a pandemic. So far it hasn't mutated and has only infected a small number of people in its original form. The virus takes up residence deep in the human lungs and is not spread yet from human to human. So until the virus mutates via pigs, there really isn't much danger. But it's only a matter of time. I hope that explains things.
4. World Health Organisation (WHO) Avian Influenza FAQ List: "Do migratory birds spread highly pathogenic avian influenza viruses?" "The role of migratory birds in the spread of highly pathogenic avian influenza is not fully understood. Wild waterfowl are considered the natural reservoir of all influenza A viruses. They have probably carried influenza viruses, with no apparent harm, for centuries. They are known to carry viruses of the H5 and H7 subtypes, but usually in the low pathogenic form. Considerable circumstantial evidence suggests that migratory birds can introduce low pathogenic H5 and H7 viruses to poultry flocks, which then mutate to the highly pathogenic form. In the past, highly pathogenic viruses have been isolated from migratory birds on very rare occasions involving a few birds, usually found dead within the flight range of a poultry outbreak. This finding long suggested that wild waterfowl are not agents for the onward transmission of these viruses. Recent events make it likely that some migratory birds are now directly spreading the H5N1 virus in its highly pathogenic form. Further spread to new areas is expected."