Manitoba saw a few cases of avian flu in the spring, but it was a quiet summer as all of Canada only had seven cases in July and August, none of which were in Manitoba. Recently, however, the entire country has seen an uptick in cases says Manitoba Chicken Producers Executive Director Wayne Hiltz.
"There have been outbreaks in several provinces across the country in the last few weeks, and last week we did have two more cases in flocks in Manitoba, with a third one that has actually just been confirmed today."
Hiltz says the most common cause of transmission is through wild birds, and Manitoba Chicken Producers are doing everything in their power to limit the spread of avian flu.
"They're carriers of the disease, while they themselves are immune to it, they're carriers of Avian Influenza. So any direct contact with birds or any direct contact with wild bird manure is the most common way that it spreads. The big risk is outdoor flocks or birds that have access to outdoors, that's the biggest risk of this landing in the poultry industry."
Biosecurity is extremely important when trying to stop the spread of avian flu says Hilts, and while it's important to stick to the basics, he says they've had to step it up as well.
"We certainly have all of our producers on upgraded biosecurity, which would mean no visitors into your yard, locking gates if available, making sure you're doing multiple changes of clothing or footwear before you enter into your barn. Which again, a lot of that is standard biosecurity, but it's upgraded now to a higher degree."
Avian flu was detected in Canada for the first time since 2015 in December, and there have now been over 120 cases across 9 provinces.
