Parrot that died in UK Quarrantine tests positive for Bird Flu

[TomClash]

http://news.bbc.co.uk/

[bigworld]

1. BBC link

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/4365956.stm

text:

A parrot that died in quarantine in the UK has tested positive for avian flu, the government has said.

The Department for the Environment, Fisheries and Food (Defra) has not said if it is the lethal strain H5N1.

It is the first case of avian flu in Britain - it has been found in Romania, Turkey and Greece after apparently being carried from Asia by wild birds.

Scientists say the disease does not appear able to spread between humans, but there are fears it could mutate.

[acmavm]

2. Ah, the crawler at the top of the page. My suggestion would be to halt

the importation of all birds from Asia.

But that's just me.

[geomon666]

3. It was spread by wild birds. n/t

[Straight Shooter]

4. You can't stop the smugglers, though.

They are the worst. Thousands of smuggled birds die in horrendous conditions. Makes my blood pressure go up just thinking about it. :mad:

[YouthInAsia]

73. yes, but the flu ITESLF can stop th smugglers. Literally DEAD in their

tracks.

[pitohui]

15. south america is not normally considered asia

but maybe that's just me

the bbc's reporting on bird issues has been sloppy in the past so it may be that they are incorrect as to the origin of the bird, but it does say the bird was imported from south america at this time of reading the article -- and the bird flu is NOT in the british isles since it was caught in quarantine

[kestrel91316]

38. This parrot in question was imported with a large group from

SOUTH AMERICA.

Time for the Brits to be very thankful for their strict quarantine rules.

[NIGHT TRIPPER]

41. parrots outlive most humans-not a good sign-quarantine won't help

forecast: partly sunny, mostly doom with partial gloom,
dissipating later into chaos,
with a 50% chance of annihilation

[kestrel91316]

58. Parrots' lifespans have nothing to do with anything here............

the parrot that died, died. And ALL the others in quarantine with it (the lot shippid in from SA) have been destroyed. End of problem.

The quarantine kept them from getting out into the general population (pet stores, etc) to spread the avian flu.

[FlaGranny]

59. Isn't it worrying that these birds came from South America?

Do migration paths of northern and southern hemisphere birds cross? Is this the first time it has been found in the western hemisphere?

[kestrel91316]

61. If you read the article closely you will see that this has NOT

been confirmed as the Asian H5N1 strain. It IS H5 - something........

My guess is that it is NOT going to turn out to be H5N1, and that is it just another avian flu outbreak like happens every day. We have avian flu in the US, but it is not the bad strain. It's a common enough disease.

[NIGHT TRIPPER]

66. to kestrel and zip code:-----------doh-----------

that's all I've got to say-

--doh----

[htuttle]

5. It's not dead -- it's just sleeping

...or pining for the fjords!

[B3Nut]

8. If you hadn't nailed it to the perch

It would be pushing up daisies! It is an ex-parrot!

:D

Todd in Cheesecurdistan

[Javaman]

11. Hello, Polly!! Wakie, wakie!

[cyberpj]

13. No, no.....No, 'e's stunned!

STUNNED?!?

Yeah! You stunned him, just as he was wakin' up!

[MarsThe Cat]

14. beautiful bird, the norwegian blue...

nt

[GregW]

18. If I hadn't nailed that bird down ...

... it would have nuzzled up to those bars, bent 'em apart with its little pecker, and VOOM!

[Roland99]

54. He has ceased to be!

But the FEAR FEAR FEAR of the bird flu is very much alive.


Why am I reminded of the lethal gas scare in that scene from Close Encounters of the Third Kind?

[Truebrit71sbruv]

68. 'Ee 'as joined the choir hinvisibule!!!

Bird 'flu... one sneeze... and an infinite variety of "mutations" of the virus to hitch your paranoia to!

Long live blind panic!

[Greeby]

6. Umm, eep

:scared: :yoiks:

[suffragette]

7. Ireland online is saying the bird came from South America

http://breakingnews.iol.ie/news/story.asp?j=159994426&p=y59995y3z

Bird flu parrot dies in UK quarantine
21/10/2005 - 20:26:53

A parrot which died in quarantine in the UK had avian flu, the British Department for Environment Food and Rural Affairs said tonight.

The H5 strain of the virus was isolated in a parrot imported from South America, which arrived in this country in mid-September.

Chief Veterinary Officer Debby Reynolds said: “The confirmed case does not affect the UK’s official disease free status because the disease has been identified in imported birds during quarantine.”

I only found the site when searching google news for more info, so don't know how accurate it generally is or isn't.

edited for formatting error

[Ouabache]

9. and how many have come into the US since mid September?

and what are our quarantine policies? Oh right, that would be government regulation of free enterprise. Couldn't have that, could we? I had a post from last weekend where I noticed all the birds usually in the aviary at the Indianpolis Zoo were 'OFF DISPLAY'. That includes a LOT of parrot type birds, folk. Let's all call our zoos and find out what is going on.

[pitohui]

17. we have aggressive & effective quarantine policies

if you don't know what you're talking about, stop talking

importation of wild-caught birds ended in 92, quarantine & importation of other birds is tightly & almost excessively well-controlled

call the u.s. dept. of agriculture (USDA) or APHIS for information on import policy

don't hassle zoos, they do a great job of educating & breeding birds to bring a love of these creatures to the masses

[TexasLawyer]

29. But not for smuggled birds

and it looks like there are plenty of those.

http://www.internationalparrotletsociety.org/smuggle.html

"The illegal wildlife trade is a multi-billion-dollar-a-year global "business" that threatens the future viability of the world's wildlife. Wild-caught birds, including parrots and macaws, are a prime target for this black market. Many species are highly prized by collectors and other people who seek exotic pets, making them highly profitable commodities for wildlife smugglers."

[the_spectator]

50. Sure "importation of wild-caught birds" has ended,

but birds can fly, can't they? They can get here all by themselves, without having to go through customs or anything! Why isn't the airforce flying continuous sorties over our borders, and shooting down any birds that cross into our air-space? Huh???

[pitohui]

56. i hope you forgot the sarcasm tag

you really want to live in a world where all migratory birds have been destroyed

enjoy being alive by the resulting insects

sheesh

if you think flu is bad, try dengue fever

[the_spectator]

64. Your hopes are right,

I like to leave off the sacrasm tag, and let people figure it out themselves. (Plus, why is "sarcasm" dripping RED in that tag??? It makes it look disconcertingly and inappropriately bloody!)

[kestrel91316]

40. Also, they don't even know if this was H5N1. They only know

it was H5--- something.

[Supersedeas]

71. policies....?....Brownie is doing a heck of a job

[suffragette]

10. More info from Defra's site - it was in quarantine with birds from Taiwan

http://www.defra.gov.uk/news/2005/051021f.htm

CONFIRMED CASE OF AVIAN FLU IN IMPORTED PARROT PICKED UP IN QUARANTINE

A highly pathogenic H5 Avian Flu virus has been isolated in a parrot imported from Suriname, South America. The birds were in quarantine with a consignment of birds from Taiwan.

The H5 virus was discovered in samples taken from a bird that died in quarantine. The bird was part of a mixed consignment of 148 parrots and "soft bills" that arrived on 16th September 2005.

Chief Veterinary Officer Debby Reynolds said:

"The confirmed case does not affect the UK's official disease free status because the disease has been identified in imported birds during quarantine."

The bird was in a biosecure quarantine unit. All the birds in the unit are being culled humanely.

It is very difficult for humans to contract avian influenza however, the necessary actions to protect human health have been taken in this instance. These include culling of the bird consignment and giving antiviral treatment as a precautionary measure to the small number of people who have been in contact with the birds.

Chief Veterinary Officer Debby Reynolds added "the incident showed the importance of the UK's quarantine system.

"We have had similar incidents in the past where disease has been discovered but successfully contained as a result of our quarantine arrangements."

[pitohui]

20. it makes more sense than the bbc report (south america)

it is sad that the birds must be depopulated but it's the same thing we do here in the usa & really no alternative to quick control of the spread of the disease

suriname is one of v. very few south american nations that still allow legal export of wild birds

[suffragette]

25. yes, it seems more informative

Good to know that the process of quarantining the entering birds worked.
Its the first item I've noticed that looked at this aspect of the issue.

[norml]

12. No no he's not dead, he's, he's restin'!

Remarkable bird, the Norwegian Blue, idn'it, ay? Beautiful plumage!

[Ouabache]

16. Well, he won't be graspin' anything by its' husk, now.

nt

[TexasLawyer]

32. 'e's just pining for the fiords

That parrot is definitely deceased, and when I purchased it not 'alf an hour ago, you assured me that its total lack of movement was due to it bein' tired and shagged out following a prolonged squawk.

[SheilaT]

19. I don't know whether to be

annoyed at the Monty Python dead parrot routine or not.

Keep in mind, all that's dying are birds. I still cannot understand why there's this public hysteria that the bird flu might, that's it, might mutate and infect humans. And that maybe if it makes the leap to humans that it will be both deadly and highly contagious human to human.

Why the sudden fear that it could happen this year, with this strain of bird flu? It makes no sense.

Actually, what we should be concerned about is that since this seems to be pretty deadly to the birds that contract it, that there's a chance stocks of wild or tame birds could be nearly wiped out, with consequent losses to the food supply or disruption in the ecosystem. That seems to me ought to be the bigger worry.

[pitohui]

27. threat to poultry industry is historical reason for these precautions

this is not necessarily anything a human could catch, indeed, it's quite unlikely, but avian flu is aggressively controlled wherever it is found in the usa because of the potential threat to the poultry industry

so the threat to the food supply is the v. real concern & the reason we have a whole infrastructure to deal w. this issue

this is why in usa it is the u.s. dept. of agriculture that you see taking action in these matters

avian flu is actually a routine event in usa w. procedures in place to keep it contained

i don't know so much about uk but it sounds like they have a similar set-up

it might not make for a pretty headline but there are good people in place working to protect the food supply

[aquart]

31. Might? Uh....

You might want to read up on it a bit.

Try googling Asia Avian flu human deaths. That oughta work.

[SheilaT]

39. Everything I read makes

me more and more puzzled at the scare tactics. 60 people over three years, all of whom were in close contact with infected birds, does not sound like a virus that's on the verge of becoming a deadly person to person flu.

So far this year alone 66 people (according to the CDC) have died from West Nile Virus in this country. So WNV would seem to be a greater threat than avian flu. Yet you hear very little about it.

And most of the attempts to compare the hypothetical human deadly version of the avian flu don't really hold up. In 1918 the reason that flu spread so rapidly was that soldiers, many of whom had literally never been off the farm in their lives and so had a relatively naive and untested immune system, were suddenly crammed together in crowded and not entirely sanitary conditions. Simple hand washing, which would have been much less common back then, makes a huge difference.

Just be prepared for an ever more dire version of "This year's flu season will be terrible and thousands will die" than is usual. And I'd be willing to bet (if I were a betting person) that once again we'll have a milder flu season than usual.

[UKCynic]

49. All the answers on H5N1

Try WHO they have a very good FAQ section

http://www.who.int/csr/disease/avian_influenza/en/

[SheilaT]

63. Thank you for the link.

It's nice to see everything so neatly gathered together in one place.

But I'm still not backing down from my assertion that there's no greater likelihood of a flu pandemic or epidemic this year than in any other year.

I remember reading at least a dozen years back that the essential reservoir of flu is contained in Chinese farming practices, the raising of swine and ducks side by side. Apparently each one eats the feces of the other, which makes for efficient husbandry, but allows the two species to pass flu virus back and forth, allowing it to mutate quite nicely, and generating most sources of human flu.

And I remain puzzled over the very recent pronouncement that the 1918 flu was an avian flu, not a swine flu as had been earlier claimed.

What I do hope is the outcome of all this (NOT a major flu epidemic of course) but that all countries really do think out how they'd respond to a major outbreak of disease that would incapacitate or kill many and overwhelm medical resources.

The real core of the problem is not whether avian flu makes the jumps to humans. but the fact that our entire infrastructure basically depends on the current rate of worker absenteeism, numbers who report to the emergency room, and so on. In short, even a relatively minor change can absolutely overwhelm the system, and THAT'S the real problem.

[raccoon]

53. Agree with you there, it MIGHT mutate & infect humans.

Also, a comet MIGHT come this way and hit Earth (a la DEEP IMPACT), a huge earthquake MIGHT occur somewhere in the US, the Rapture MIGHT come tomorrow, aliens from Alpha Centauri MIGHT invade to bring regime change to the US...

Of course, that last one might be a good thing.

[0007]

21. Wish there were more information. Where in South America

and what kind of parrot.

Does anyone know?

[pitohui]

22. it's directly upthread

the bird was from suriname, one of the few so. amer. nations that allow legal export of wild birds

the disease is not in so. america, the parrot acquired it from being in a mixed lot w. birds from taiwan

the birds in that lot have been depopulated and the disease is not in uk either

this is exactly how the usa would handle it

very aggressive controls on imported birds, this is a case of the system is working fine

[0007]

23. Thank you. Do you know what kind of parrot it was?

[rodeodance]

24. the headline is misleading--a H5 strain has been found at this point.

....A parrot that died in quarantine in the UK has tested positive for avian flu, the government has said.

A highly pathogenic H5 strain of the disease has been found, but it is not known if it is the H5N1 variant which has killed at least 60 people in Asia.

Because the bird - imported from south America - was in quarantine, the UK's disease-free status is not affected.

So far bird flu - in some cases the H5N1 strain - has been found in Europe in Romania, Turkey and Greece.

[mike_c]

30. this is worth reinforcing....

H5N1 avian flu strains are found in birds all over the globe, including the U.S. The H5N1 designation encompasses a family of virus strains, not just the one everyone is concerned might jump to humans and start a pandemic.

[pitohui]

55. absolutely mike

i don't think we or the media have done a good job of getting this across, hence the fear seen on this site & in the media

i don't want to say that dealing w. these flu strains is "routine" but there are v. strong procedures in place -- & the procedures have been tested because we do regularly have to deal w. containing outbreaks in usa, it is not like it is something that never happened before & it's drownie brownie running around like a chicken w. head cut off not knowing what to do

[kestrel91316]

62. Proof that, indeed, a little bit of knowledge is a very dangerous thing...

people see "avian flu" or "H5" and go into a blind panic.

Sheesh.

[Ladyhawk]

26. Who knows? It could have been a conure, Amazon, macaw, Pionus,

Brotogeris: any of the various parrot families native to the area. :shrug: I didn't see the species mentioned in the article.

[pitohui]

28. you are correct

i checked the articles but didn't see a mention of species

often un-informed people -- & i certainly consider most journalists un-informed when it comes to birds -- call amazons "green parrots" or just "parrots," so one of the amazon species might be the best guess, but really we don't know

i'm not sure it matters

[Ladyhawk]

37. Actually every single family I mentioned has a mostly green representative

Hehe.

But you knew that, too. :)

Pionus, Amazons, Brotogeris and conures are mostly green with some exceptions. Military and mini macaws are mostly green, too. Green is very popular among parrots. ;)

[pitohui]

57. agreed

that is why i find the usage "green parrot" for amazon so grating

:-)

[Ladyhawk]

65. LOL...most parrots come in green. :) The only families that break this

rule are the large macaws (to some extent) and cockatoos (always). Cockatoos come in white, black and gray with yellow, red and pink accents, but never in green. :)

On edit: Yeah, African greys break the mold, too, but they aren't part of a large family group, either, with only two species. :)

[WinkyDink]

33. It is an ex-parrot!

It has joined the choir celestial!

[twaddler01]

34. we are all going to die

:sarcasm:

[ticapnews]

35. It's just a matter of when and how.

Seriously.

[twaddler01]

36. I think Bushco & friends

have lowered our life expectancy by ....let's see, 20 years?

[Taxloss]

42. BBC: Bird flu found in parrot in UK

A parrot that died in quarantine in the UK has tested positive for avian flu, the government has said.

A highly pathogenic H5 strain of the disease has been found, but it is not known if it is the H5N1 variant which has killed at least 60 people in Asia.

Because the bird - imported from south America - was in quarantine, the UK's disease-free status is not affected.

Meanwhile, poultry imports from Croatia are being banned by the EU after the virus was found in six swans there.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/4365956.stm

-----

Hooray for historic paranoia.

[mark11727]

43. A Norwegian Blue...?

Beautiful plumage...!

[Taxloss]

44. It may be pining for the fjords ....

[no_hypocrisy]

45. Polly wanna Tamiflu . . .

[Theres-a]

52. *snarf*

:spray: Why did the chicken cross the road?...............To start a global pandemic!(from the Colbert Report)

[nadinbrzezinski]

46. Colombia has another variant of the Avian flu

(looking at my kids, they are feathered you see)

[Dead_Parrot]

47. Grapevine: 2 dead in Enfield Hospital (London)...

...with 'flu-like symptoms. "I've been watching the news and there's nothing about it, I wonder if they're trying to keep it quiet". Or it could be normal 'flu, but the timing is a little odd.
:scared:
No link, this is Word-of-mouth from a council worker there, so don't know how much you want to worry over it.

AbE: No more Dead Parrot jokes. I beat all of you anyway. :P

[Truebrit71sbruv]

69. Ah... the word of mouth network!!!

Everso everso reliable that one...
~nodsnodsnodsnodsnods~

[redacted]

48. Avian Flu virus also found in Canadian pigeons

although not the dangerous N1 strain. See:

http://www.ctv.ca/servlet/ArticleNews/story/CTVNews/20051021/australia_birdimportban_reax_20051021/20051021?hub=TopStories

See ABC News Australia for the other side of the story. Don't have link handy but they also have a video posted on their website explaining why they shut down bird imports from Canada.

[Taxloss]

51. This is not a serious problem.

For a start, it demonstrates the effectiveness of the UK's quarantine procedures. Secondly, a British firm announced yesterday that they will be able to prepare a vaccine to an h2h version of H5N1 within days of the strain being known, and prepare Britain effectively. We are ready.

[zann725]

60. Is this true? Or like those "artificial sweetener tests" where they inject

tons and tons of the stuff into the test animals, then "surprisingly" find that their tests prove the stuff causes cancer...INDEED...as anything would...under those conditions.

For over a year now they've been hyping this flu. If only they can get it to "fly." With enough "help", I fear for us all, that they can. Though only through "aided" mutation.

[muriel_volestrangler]

67. Just confirmed as H5N1 strain

On BBC ticker - http://news.bbc.co.uk/

[Truebrit71sbruv]

70. Can you imagine the sicknotes that are going to start flying around?

Sorry... little Johnny could not come into to school yesterday, he woke up covered in feathers and we fort 'ee 'ad burd-flu...

(No Mrs Miggins... his pillow burst in the night...)

[Zynx]

72. *Resists urge for Monty Python joke*

[Cessna Invesco Palin]

75. Fine, be that way.

I'll do it:

It's pinin' for the fjords!

[Irish Mastiff]

74. Britain has more problems than this parrot. Dead Geese Found.

http://www.thesun.co.uk/article/0,,2-2005490280,00.html

BRITAIN could be brought to its knees by bird flu, Health Secretary Patricia Hewitt admitted last night.

She advised anyone with flu symptoms to stay at home and not risk spreading the disease.

And she admitted big public events like football matches or concerts may be outlawed if there is a pandemic.

Ms Hewitt told ITV’s Jonathan Dimbleby: “People would be advised to stay away from crowds.”

She was speaking as dead Brent geese from the bird flu danger-zone of Siberia began washing-up in Essex.
(snip)

[Cessna Invesco Palin]

76. Ah, The Sun.

Certainly never met a good panic they didn't like.

[whatever4]

77. I'm still worried

Reading all the comments here helps, but I listened to a Senator from Iowa this morning. He said there is a case of one human to human transmission. He also said that it's been found in pigs, but I forget if he said where. The incubation period is 14 days, and the fatality rate is 50%. It's just...real bad. I sincerely hope you, most of you, are right, and that it's a scare tactic. Or, is simply being used for some political goal.

I'm worried. The woman interviewing him (I am so bad with names it's pathological) rattled of a list of all the countries this flu has been found it. It was so long a list, I can't remember it all. It sounded like most of Asia. A lot of countries.

I am fighting hard to not fall for scare tactics or propaganda. What I'm worried about is this flu and stories about it are twisted propaganda that blinds us. Maybe blinds us to a real danger? Somehow?

Just let me be wrong. Let me be wrong about this one. I'll wear the dunce cap proudly, if it helps.