Bird Flu

[Mary Terry]

A man in Louisiana, a state adjacent to mine, contracted severe bird flu from "backyard flocks". I haven't been able to determine if he handled backyard chickens or a backyard flock of wild birds such as black birds or crows. At any rate, I'm now paranoid about feeding the wild birds and providing clean water in bird baths. Clearly, water birds like ducks, geese, terns, storks, etc. are major carriers of bird flu but songbirds like jays, mockingbirds, cardinals, and woodpeckers are less likely to be infected. I've read that commercial chicken producers don't want any wild birds near their chickens due to potential exposure to flu.

Do you think it is "safe" for me to fill birdfeeders and wash out the bird baths every day as long as I wash my hands and not breath aerosolized water spray from the bird baths?

 

[FayetheAspie]

I don't really know. Perhaps try to learn more about how bad the case is in your area and what is being recommended before making a decision.

 

[Outdated]

I was just reading about this a few minutes ago. The man in Louisiana that was hospitalised is 65 years old and also had other underlying health conditions, but at the same time there's been a big rise in the number of human cases in the US in the last couple of years. Wearing gloves while cleaning out the bird baths might not be a bad idea.

One thing the story I read didn't mention and I'm curious about, is it badly affecting your milk and beef exports?

 

[Neonatal RRT]

I was just reading about this a few minutes ago. The man in Louisiana that was hospitalised is 65 years old and also had other underlying health conditions, but at the same time there's been a big rise in the number of human cases in the US in the last couple of years. Wearing gloves while cleaning out the bird baths might not be a bad idea.

One thing the story I read didn't mention and I'm curious about, is it badly affecting your milk and beef exports?

I'm no expert resource here, but from what I understand, it has infected some cattle herds. That said, most countries will not accept beef and dairy from the US anyway (another conversation). Furthermore, we import a large percentage of beef.

 

[Mary Terry]

I'm finding some contradictory information about the risk of humans getting bird flu.

Our state board of animal health says people can get infected when the virus gets in their eyes, nose or mouth and recommend wearing gloves, a mask or eye protection around birds even if the birds don't look sick. That would include bird feeders and birdbaths in my judgment.

The US Department of Health and Human Services says the most common songbirds and other wild birds found in the yard, like cardinals, sparrows, blue jays, crows and pigeons, don't get the bird flu viruses that can be dangerous to poultry and spread to humans. I'm not sure I believe that.

I'll start wearing one of those clear plastic full-face visors left over from the Covid pandemic when I fill up the feeders and put clean water in the birdbaths and continue to thoroughly wash my hands afterwards. I'm still recovering from RSV I caught on Thanksgiving and I certainly don't want to get another respiratory infection.

 

[Outdated]

We've had a few outbreaks in Australia too but so far it's only poultry farms that have been affected. We're pretty harsh with quarantine when an outbreak occurs because our beef exports are a fair chunk of our economy.

 

[Mary Terry]

I was just reading about this a few minutes ago. The man in Louisiana that was hospitalised is 65 years old and also had other underlying health conditions, but at the same time there's been a big rise in the number of human cases in the US in the last couple of years. Wearing gloves while cleaning out the bird baths might not be a bad idea.

One thing the story I read didn't mention and I'm curious about, is it badly affecting your milk and beef exports?

I'm more worried about inhaling water spray from the hose when I wash out and refill the birdbaths and the dust from the bird feeders. I can always wash my hands and be careful not to touch my face with them before I wash them.

Some contaminated domestic, pasteurized milk supplies have been dumped, and drinking raw milk is strictly recommended against. Well, drinking raw milk is like playing Russian roulette anyway. I haven't heard anything about any impact on beef. The major problem has been commercial poultry producers who have had to kill entire flocks, which made eggs scarce and drove up prices.

 

[Judge]

Indeed, it has been disturbing to hear the latest speculation over the Bird Flu. Particularly some advisories suggesting humans get inoculated with generic flu shots, despite all the different strains making their rounds.

Not sure what to think right now.

 

[FilterFreq]

I don't want to sound too anti-alarmist, but even the case in California is just a singular event. While I feel bad for anyone severely affected by these things, news travels faster than ever and it seems like the world is more than just 'doomscrolling' -- everybody is anticipating horrible things that haven't even happened yet. It's collective anxiety at best, and hysteria at worst.

If we looked at and calculated real statistics, we wouldn't want to get into another moving vehicle, we'd probably favor planes over all other forms of transportation, and we'd probably avoid packaged foods. But, hey, our anxieties are hardly ever rooted in reality. Sure, bad things do happen, but not as often as we think -- and certainly not where we think.

 

[FilterFreq]

We've had a few outbreaks in Australia too but so far it's only poultry farms that have been affected. We're pretty harsh with quarantine when an outbreak occurs because our beef exports are a fair chunk of our economy.

I could see this being one of the more dire (accurate) consequences -- anything that disrupts food supply would likely cost some quantity of money to resolve, which would then be passed on to consumers (if they're not already facing some degree of scarcity). That alone could really pile up into a colossal inconvenience, even though it's not quite a doomsday or deathbed-scenario.

 

[Tom]

I don't know anything about that flu really, but I like feeding the birds in winter, and the way I do it seems pretty safe. I live next to a creek so water isn't an issue and just throw bird seed out behind the bushes from my front door. Squirrels chipmunks, mice ,voles, etc, will join in but I like those too and just throw out more seed. And they seem to get along ok and tend to have different feeding times. The birds will feed close to the squirrels and chipmunks. The only trouble makers really are a small bird I haven't identified but looks like a sparrow. But once they see the seed supply never stops they chill out. Behind the bushes also stays snow free usually and the bushes provide some security for the birds. The only real problem is I have to buy a lot of wild bird seed. : A real budget item in winter. But this year there is only one squirrel so not so bad (years with 3-4 get costly.) and he/she lives in a tree nest in the front yard so is pretty much family to me.

 

[Outdated]

Well, drinking raw milk is like playing Russian roulette anyway.

That reminded me of an old country joke - an old lady complaining about her husband: "He won't drink milk because he says it's unhygienic, but he still eats eggs.".

I don't think you need to panic about the bird flu, especially if you're reasonably fit and in good health, but taking a few simple precautions won't hurt. I agree that breathing in airborne water spray probably represents a big problem, perhaps doing things the old fashioned way with just running water and a brush instead of using a high pressure water jet might be a good idea considering the circumstances.

 

[GrownupGirl]

Orange man was re-elected so of course there has to be another pandemic.

 

[stevens]

A man in Louisiana, a state adjacent to mine, contracted severe bird flu from "backyard flocks". I haven't been able to determine if he handled backyard chickens or a backyard flock of wild birds such as black birds or crows. At any rate, I'm now paranoid about feeding the wild birds and providing clean water in bird baths. Clearly, water birds like ducks, geese, terns, storks, etc. are major carriers of bird flu but songbirds like jays, mockingbirds, cardinals, and woodpeckers are less likely to be infected. I've read that commercial chicken producers don't want any wild birds near their chickens due to potential exposure to flu.

Do you think it is "safe" for me to fill birdfeeders and wash out the bird baths every day as long as I wash my hands and not breath aerosolized water spray from the bird baths?

I think you are wise to think of this. Avian flu is pandemic in birds and, now, in other species. If I were to clean out a bird bath I would first titrate the water in it with enough bleach to reach at least 100 parts per million chlorine, and then let it sit for 30 minutes or so. That much bleach will not harm birds, but then at least when you're working the aerosol might contain far less viable virus. I do know that influenza A can persist for a considerable period of time in water and on surfaces.

 

[WhitewaterWoman]

The CDC reports the man hospitalized with bird flu was exposed to sick and dying birds in his backyard flock. It is the same strain that has been reported in other locations, so it came from the US. There have been 61 confirmed cases of bird flu in the US.

The problem for Mary Terry and me and others like us, is that we are old and our bodies do not hold up well when stressed with a powerful viral agent.

The CDC is recommending PPEs for people working with sick or dead birds, or people like hunters who are handling, skinning, etc. game birds.

In general, I would say it is a low probability event to get bird flu from your feeders and bird bath. BUT, if it were a good friend of mine, I'd say, take all precautions.

 

[Mary Terry]

I could see this being one of the more dire (accurate) consequences -- anything that disrupts food supply would likely cost some quantity of money to resolve, which would then be passed on to consumers (if they're not already facing some degree of scarcity). That alone could really pile up into a colossal inconvenience, even though it's not quite a doomsday or deathbed-scenario.

I just read that Iowa has destroyed 43% of the state's egg-laying chickens due to bird flu and that egg prices in the US are the highest they have ever been due to destruction of infected flocks. I guess I'll continue to get chicken and guinea hen eggs from my sister. Her flock seems healthy. But who really knows?!

 

[Mary Terry]

I think you are wise to think of this. Avian flu is pandemic in birds and, now, in other species. If I were to clean out a bird bath I would first titrate the water in it with enough bleach to reach at least 100 parts per million chlorine, and then let it sit for 30 minutes or so. That much bleach will not harm birds, but then at least when you're working the aerosol might contain far less viable virus. I do know that influenza A can persist for a considerable period of time in water and on surfaces.

That's a great idea. This time of year, I just blast out the birdbaths with a garden hose, holding my thumb over the end of the hose to increase the water pressure. I don't scrub them out until summer when they grow thick algae in the bottom of the birdbaths.

 

[Mary Terry]

Bird flu has been detected in domestic cats. Most have died from it; others have gotten very sick but survived. Can it jump from cats to humans? We don't know. But we do know that it can jump from cattle and poultry to humans.