Avian Health Symposium Reveals Need For Cooperation
(Continued from Pago Al)
ties granted to the Pennsylvania
Department of Agriculture
through the Domestic Animal Law
to battle disease.
Also, the Rev. Ronald Romig, a
well-known and widely recog
nized fancy bird and backyard
grower, promoter and auctioneer
for the live bird market, discussed
the value, growth and projected
growth of that market
He said that it promises perhaps
the greatest growth opportunity in
the poultry business, and it
shouldn’t be shunned by the larger
commercial industry.
The impetus for the symposium
came from the state Legislature,
when it provided few $5 million to
help with eradication and control
of the most recent outbreak of
avian influenza.
hi the early 1980 s, the federal
government spent more than $6O
million to eradicate a highly
pathogenic variety of avian
influenza virus.
While the most recent variety is
considered “non-pa thogcnic," or
non-deadly, according to experts
and officials (speaking from the
podium and the floor during the
symposium), it's a mistake to
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interpret the word “non
pa thogcnic” to mean that it doesn’ t
kill birds.
Mortality docs increase, as docs
morbidity (the display of illness).
To ensure that it wasn’t merely
performing a temporary bailout for
commcrical poultry producers
with the $5 million allocation, the
Legislature tacked on some addi
tonal requirements.
In addition to doing more
research, the PDA was to assess
the situation and report back to the
Legislature.
- State Deputy Secretary of Agri
culture for Administration Dr.
Zoann Parker said this week that
the Legislature will receive its
report on the symposium in early
March.
To provide the Legislature with
the report that it and the poultry
industry needs, five committees
were formed. Their reports basi
cally fcxmcd the presentations dur
ing the symposium.
The five committees addressed
legal issues, the live bird market,
research, insurance, and risk
reduction.
The committees are not going to
disappear now that the symposium
has been held, according to Parker.
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Plans are for the committees to
continue to meet and to help deve
lop regulations and guidelines for
biosecurity, marketing and proto
col for the next outbreak of avian
influenza.
(Chances are that some form of
avian influenza will break out
again, since it is worldwide and
found widely in migratory water
fowl and other wildfowl.)
While the title of the symposium
was avian health, it dealt primarily
with avian influenza, though there
are other diseases of concern in the
poultry industry, such as New
Castle’s Disease.
Given the uncertainty of disease
outbreak, it can be assumed that
avian influenza is not, nor will it
be, the only disease of concern by
the poultry industry.
It is, however, for now the dis
ease of most concern.
Until the source of it can be dis
covered, and potentially elimi
nated, it can be assumed that forms
of the virus will continue to
threaten the poultry industry and
potentially human health.
As far as the use of a vaccine to
maintain bird health in the pre
sence of the H7N2 avian influenza
associated with the most recent
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outbreaks in the
consensus of the poultry industry
was that they would rather not use
a vaccine.
There are at least two important
reasons for not using a vaccine
foreign markets could and some
would ban vaccinated birds from
entering, thus jeopardizing a sig
nificant portion or the market for
Pennsylvania birds; it would add to
the regular cost of production and
put producers at an economic
disadvantage.
However, vaccines have been
shown to be effective in stopping
the spread of the disease, accord
ing to one expert who reported on
what Mexico had done to battle a
pathogenic strain there.
It was also reported that the
recent human deaths attributable to
a Hong Kong version of avian
influenza, and the whole destruc
tion of poultry there, arc evidence
of the seriousness that world lead
ers are taking concerning the
disease.
As an aside, a symposium
expert said the Hong Kong avian
influenza represents the first
known time that the disease has
been transferred from bird to man.
However, the expert said the
national Centers for Disease Con
trol (the U.S. Public Health Ser
vice’s agencies for the control of
infectious and preventable dis
eases) still has insufficient data to
establish that a direct bird-to-man
route was the pathway for
infection.
As far as the use of vaccine in
battling avian influenza, there is a
fairly large cache of vaccine spe
cific for the H2N7 influenza found
in Lebanon and Lancaster counties
over the past year or so. It was
developed at the request of the
state, and is being held by the U.S.
Department of Agriculture.
It is not to be used unless the dis
ease changes into a deadly form.
As many medical and health
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officials and others have been find
ing, the old saying, “What doesn’t
kill you makes you stronger,” can
very much apply to many diseases
or pests.
Viruses, one of the less under
stood communicable diseases,
constitute a large group of organ
isms that can affect plants and
animals.
In any case, it has been shown
repeatedly that nonjudicious use of
a biocides can create resistant
forms that become almost
unstoppable or more dangerous.
Modem uses of fungicides,
insecticides and herbicides have
shown that resistance can develop
from repeated and heavy
applications.
Similarly, because of mutations,
viruses can become resistant or
develop into new varieties, or
appear the same but exhibit dead
lier effects, if treated primarily
with a single approach.
The general strategy in prevent
ing resistance developing in any
disease or pest is to combine the
use of physical barriers, chrono
logical barriers, and life cycle
interruptions, with the judicious
use of chemical or biological
controls.
In the plant industry it has been
called Integrated Pest Manage
ment (IPM).
For the poultry industiy, the
apparent “IPM" strategy in the
fight against avian influenza is for
strict biosecurity measures to be
planned and used, and to be
reviewed regularly for
thoroughness.
All poultry producers should
keep accurate records and adopt
strictly followed biosecurity
measures.
They should also understand
that the virus is microscopic, and
can be carried on microscopic
materials, mainly organic.
For practical use, they did say
that it appears to remain mostly
active in manure, and in the birds.
Maintaining control of those two
physical things by preventing con
tamination of fields, vehicles, and
clothes, and taking precautions to
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