Vaccination against avian flu ensures a minimum of over 80%

Don't be subjective about avian flu 

Avian flu is an infectious disease of birds (including poultry and wild birds) and mammals including humans. The disease is caused by the type A influenza virus.

On the cover, there are two types of antigens: H (Hemagglutinin) and N (Neuraminidase). The H antigen has 16 subtypes numbered from H1 to H16 and the N antigen has 9 subtypes numbered from N1 to N9.

Depending on the virus strain causing the disease, subtype H and N symbols are assigned to that virus strain. In Vietnam, the virus strains that cause highly pathogenic avian influenza have been identified, including H5N1 and H5N6.

According to Phu Yen Sub-Department of Livestock and Animal Health, in livestock farming, chickens often get very sick and ducks often carry pathogens but rarely show clinical symptoms and are the main source of spreading pathogens into the environment. 

The disease spreads very quickly, killing many poultry species in many different species such as ducks, chickens, geese, quails, and pigeons... causing serious economic losses for farmers.

Some strains of avian influenza virus do not cause disease in poultry but can transmit disease to humans and cause death in humans.

Mr. Nguyen Van Lam, Director of the Phu Yen Sub-Department of Livestock and Animal Health, said that poultry infected with highly pathogenic avian influenza will have a short incubation period of 1-3 days or longer depending on the virulence of the virus.

Therefore, when infected poultry often die suddenly and do not show clinical symptoms; the mortality rate can reach 100% of the herd within a few days.

Regarding symptoms of bird flu in poultry, according to Mr Nguyen Van Lam, the animals can be staggered, shaking their heads, tired, trembling and lying in groups.

Along with that, there are respiratory symptoms such as difficulty breathing, wheezing, runny nose, tears, and swollen eyelids. Many animals even have swollen joints, swollen heads and faces, swollen eyelids, crests and purple patches, and bleeding under the skin, especially in areas where the skin has no hair.

In addition, they can have diarrhoea and thin white or greenish-white stools. Females that are laying have a significant decrease in egg production and in some cases lay eggs without shells.

According to the Phu Yen Sub-Department of Livestock and Animal Health, currently, the total poultry herd in the province remains stable, and vaccination is paid attention to so there are no large-scale epidemics.

However, small-scale, traditional livestock farming in farm households still accounts for a high proportion, always posing a potential risk of disease outbreaks from old outbreaks.

It is known that the total poultry herd of Phu Yen province is currently more than 4.5 million, including 32 chicken farms; 27 duck farms, geese and quails, and the rest are raised by farmers.

Ensure the avian flu vaccination rate reaches at least 80%

To proactively prevent diseases in poultry, Mr Nguyen Van Lam said, this province has issued a plan to vaccinate avian influenza in the first and second phases in 2024 and phase 1/2025.

In addition, the province also issued Official Dispatch No. 1147 dated February 29, 2024, on strengthening the prevention and control of the avian flu epidemic and implementing "Month of general cleaning, disinfection, and environmental detoxification, phase 1/2024".

Accordingly, the Provincial People's Committee requests the People's Committees of districts, cities and towns to focus resources and allocate funds to serve the prevention and control of avian flu and ensure funding for timely implementation and effective control when epidemics occur.

The province assigned the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development to coordinate with localities to strengthen management and closely monitor the avian flu epidemic situation in the area. As well as organizing influenza vaccination for poultry flocks and proactively taking samples to monitor diseases to ensure early detection, warning, and thorough handling of outbreaks, preventing the disease from spreading widely.

“Currently, we have also proactively implemented drastic and synchronous measures to prevent and control the avian influenza epidemic. Strengthen inspection and monitoring of epidemic situations to early detect outbreaks and promptly handle newly arising outbreaks. As well as instructing poultry farmers to strictly apply biosafety farming measures, proactively prevent epidemics, and review and organize thorough vaccination against avian influenza, ensuring at least over 80% of the total flocks subject to vaccination", Director of Phu Yen Sub-Department of Livestock and Animal Health shared.

In addition, the Department is also strengthening management and inspection of slaughtering activities at poultry slaughterhouses, resolutely not allowing poultry and poultry products of unknown origin or sick poultry to be slaughtered, strictly handling cases of smuggling, transporting animals and animal products of unknown origin, which have not passed quarantine, into and out of the province.