[mintytwoshoes]

Hi Everyone
How are you coping with the containment of your birds.  Just wondering when we will have the all clear to let them out again.
What is the ruling on rehoming chickens at the moment?

[Fleecewife]

Our hens are happy in the polytunnel and would be content to stay there all year.  We need to start getting our plants in now though so we're as keen as any to get the hens out and back to their own house.

Wild geese are heading back north now, so it shouldn't be long before the lockdown is lifted.

[mintytwoshoes]

I think with the spring coming they are all feeling confined be glad when we can release them[size=78%] [/size]

[doganjo]

With at least four areas recognised as having outbreaks in Scotland, one of them fairly recent  I fear it will be almost summer before we can let them out.

[Rosemary]

With at least four areas recognised as having outbreaks in Scotland, one of them fairly recent  I fear it will be almost summer before we can let them out.

Where did you get that from? I checked the ScotGov website - latest info on there is the Glenrothes outbreak 11th Feb; before that, Sanday 19th December. Most recent wild bird find 20th January in North Berwick and before that 29th December.
The commercial guys will be lobbying hard as the three months comes up on 14th March - my understanding is that eggs that were previously labelled free range will no longer be able to be labbelled in that way.

[doganjo]

Have they got Gartmorn Dam and Leven, Fife on the list?

[Rosemary]

Have they got Gartmorn Dam and Leven, Fife on the list?

Yes.

[doganjo]

That makes "at least" four doesn't it?     Leven, Glenrothes, Gartmorn, Sanday, Berwick?

[Rosemary]

That makes "at least" four doesn't it?     Leven, Glenrothes, Gartmorn, Sanday, Berwick?

There's a difference between an outbreak in domestic poultry and an incident with a wild bird.

[doganjo]

Well Gartmorn wasn't 'an incident with a wild bird' - it was several incidents with wild birds, and since it's wild birds that carry it from area to area I felt justified in including those

But that aside, I doubt our domestic/commercial birds will be allowed out any time soon.  I do hope I'm wrong as even with only four hens it is an imposition for both them and myself

[DippyEgg]

Mine are getting desperate to be let out! They start crowding near the door as soon as they see someone approaching. 

[Fleecewife]

Mine are getting desperate to be let out! They start crowding near the door as soon as they see someone approaching.

 

[harmony]

Well Gartmorn wasn't 'an incident with a wild bird' - it was several incidents with wild birds, and since it's wild birds that carry it from area to area I felt justified in including those

But that aside, I doubt our domestic/commercial birds will be allowed out any time soon.  I do hope I'm wrong as even with only four hens it is an imposition for both them and myself

You can see all the logged incidents of bird flu involving wild birds on the gov.uk site as a separate list to the commercial and domestic outbreaks. Over a year considering the HUGE populations of wild birds it is very small. Even when a group of birds are found in one location it might only amount to a couple of dozen. I know every wild bird will not be found but as it is more prevalent in wildfowl and they congregate in numbers there is a higher chance wild outbreaks would be spotted. From the evidence I think the bird flu levels in the wild population aren't concerning. Incidents in smallholder/backyard flocks is pretty low too. Where the major problems are is of course the commercial units. Again the infection rates are small but then the cull that follows is huge.


Whether domestic poultry being locked in is justifiable is not that convincing to me. A more targeted approach around outbreaks and high risk areas would seem more appropriate to me.

[chrismahon]

And a more targeted approach is the one taken in France Harmony. There are no under-cover requirements here, but when an outbreak is spotted all fowl within a 1 Km radius of it are slaughtered and a movement restriction zone of 10 Km radius is established. Bad luck though if ours or our neighbour's little domestic flocks are within the 1 Km zone, because they will be included in the slaughter.

[DippyEgg]

I think that could happen here too, couldn't it?  At least that's my understanding.  There's a farm down the road from me that let their chickens free range atm and it was the same during the last bird flu lockdown.