Oops speaking of the Devil he beat me to it !!! LOLLive bird...

Oops speaking of the Devil he beat me to it !!! LOL


Live bird import ban imminent
From: AAP By Melissa Polimeni
October 21, 2005

THE Federal Government may impose a complete ban on imports of live birds, in response to Australia's first bird flu scare.

Prime Minister John Howard has urged Australians not to panic, after pigeons imported from Canada tested positive to bird flu antibodies.
The birds were discovered by Australian Quarantine and Inspection Service (AQIS) officers in a consignment of 102 breeding pigeons that arrived in Melbourne from Canada.

Three tested positive for the antibodies of a strain of avian flu, indicating they had been exposed to the virus in the past.

A further four birds were found to have antibodies for Newcastle disease, another deadly avian illness.

The affected birds have since been destroyed and the remaining pigeons will be sent back to Canada.


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Agriculture Minister Peter McGauran has implemented a temporary ban on all bird imports from Canada, and a spokesman said the minister also was seeking advice on a complete ban on live bird imports from all countries.
That decision was likely to be made as early as next week.

Mr Howard acknowledged Australia was at risk from the potentially deadly avian influenza virus, but called for calm.

"We shouldn't panic," Mr Howard said. "We're taking all the precautions we can."

Mr McGauran said the fact the birds arrived with all the appropriate certification was the most worrying aspect.

"We have had apologies from the Canadian authorities but not yet an adequate explanation of the testing anomalies," he said.

Head of the animal health program at the Canadian Food Inspection Agency, Jim Clarke, denied Canada had been negligent and said antibodies were not dangerous.

"These are free ranging birds, in other words they're racing pigeons, so that's what they do, they fly outside and they are exposed to wild bird populations," Dr Clarke said.

"We have to remember that while birds are the reservoir of avian influenza virus, the fact that these pigeons may have contracted an influenza virus at some point in their history is not really that significant."

Infectious diseases experts were also playing down any threat, saying the fact the birds had antibodies could mean they were simply protected against the deadly virus, rather than carriers.

Head of infectious diseases at Canberra Hospital Peter Collignon, said Australian authorities may have over-reacted.

"One of the problems is we tend to over-react because we tend to put all of these avian influenza together rather than be concerned about the one that is the major concern in the world which is H5," Prof Collignon said.

Strains of influenza were continuously found in birds and there was no evidence that they were actually carrying the virus, he said.

Mr McGauran acknowledged the birds were not carrying bird flu, only the antibodies, but said the Government was taking no chances.

"That (the antibodies) could at some stage have developed into something else in the future," he said.

"Our science isn't so precise and knowledgeable, we don't know the consequences of further mutations."

Labor said the Government should boost Australia's stockpiles of anti-viral drugs and ensure public hospitals were ready for a possible human flu pandemic.

http://www.news.com.au/story/0,10117,16991709-1702,00.html