Avian Influenza Update
Cases of Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza continue to appear; at the time of writing this newsletter, the latest cases of H5N1 were in Hampshire, Lincolnshire and Norfolk.
Please remain vigilant and ring us if you think that your birds may be suffering from Avian Influenza; we have been involved in a number of AI cases recently and will be able to provide help and advice. Please remember that clinical symptoms include drops in egg production, high or sudden mortality, and respiratory distress.
If you are in a restriction zone, you will need a movement licence to move your birds. These licences need to be completed by your vet within 24 hours of movement. Each movement needs a licence and due to the sheer number of farms that are currently in restricted areas, please contact us as soon as you know when your movement will take place. This will allow us to plan accordingly and assign you a vet without compromising your biosecurity.
If your farm is still under restrictions when you place the following flock, you will also need a pre-placement vet visit to check the biosecurity of the farm. Movements of manure, eggs and Salmonella samples can be performed under a general licence.
Make sure that the disinfectants that you use on-farm are DEFRA approved, and are used at the correct dilutions under the Diseases of Poultry and Avian Influenza Order. In case of doubt, please contact any of our poultry vets who will be happy to help.
Enrichment Beyond the Housing Order
Not all pecking blocks are equal. Some are very hard, and the birds soon lose interest as they don’t crumble as the birds peck at them. Other blocks are too soft and disappear quickly in the shed.
The Well -Bird Pecking Blocks are the perfect hardness to gratify, without interfering with the flock’s day-to-day diet. These enrichment blocks are also very cost-effective. They are developed and manufactured in the UK and are designed to satisfy the bird’s natural desire to forage, explore, scratch and peck. Using pecking blocks also lowers the stress levels of the flock and problems with feather pecking are reduced, thereby enhancing overall bird welfare.
Suitable for all layers, broilers, pullets and breeders at 1 block per 1000 birds, these 14kg blocks are competitively priced per kg and also help to even the beaks. Contact us for more information or to place an order.
Reminder: New Address for Salmonella Samples
Please remember that the new address of the lab is:
Newbridge Scientific,
1 Melville Park,
Newbridge Industrial Estate,
Clifton Hall Road,
EH28 8PJ.
Please check your submission forms before sending samples to make sure that you have the correct address and if you need more submission forms or kits, please contact the Sheriff Hutton branch on sheriffhutton@poultryhealthservices.com or ring us on 01347 820366.
Biosecurity Products and Farm Supplies
We are now able to supply biosecurity products, including farm disinfectants, detergents and water sanitisers to be used at the turnaround and during the crop. We are also able to formulate C&D plans with costs per shed so that you can be proactive and plan ahead; not only for when the birds are in but before the birds arrive so that you can ensure the best possible start for your birds.
We can also provide farm hand sanitisers (effective against Covid), foot dips, gloves, masks, overalls and other farm consumables. We are offering free of charge delivery for mixed pallets of disinfectants and detergents direct to farm (minimum order applies) and, as a large poultry practice, we are confident that we can be very competitive in price whilst giving you professional, independent advice.
For more information, please contact Paul Mendham (Veterinary Support Officer) on Paul.Mendham@poultryhealthservices.com with your particular requirements.
What is Omnichlor Plus?
Omnichlor plus is a complete farm disinfectant. This is an effervescent, water-soluble tablet. It is easy to use and provides a controlled dose with powerful disinfecting performance. Omnichlor Plus has many key features: it can be used at lower concentrations to disinfect animal drinking water, supports the reduction of antibiotic use, enhances existing biosecurity programmes, and deters biofilm growth and the spread of algal blooms. Omnichlor Plus has been approved by Defra for disinfection of inanimate surfaces where a product is required to be used under the control legislation for the following disease(s) orders: Foot & Mouth, Swine vesicular disease, diseases of poultry, Tuberculosis diseases and general orders. For more information, please contact Paul Mendham (Veterinary Support Officer) on Paul.Mendham@poultryhealthservices.com. In next month’s newsletter, we will be looking at Virucidal WP.
Welcome to Cosmin Chintoan-Uta
Cosmin graduated as a vet in 2010 from the University of Bristol, and followed his veterinary degree with an MSc by research in veterinary parasitology and a PhD on the development of vaccines against Campylobacter in chickens. He has extensive experience in laboratory and in vivo research on poultry infectious diseases and microbiological food safety. Outside of work he enjoys hiking with his dogs, gardening, mountain biking, and more recently has been dabbling in taxidermy.
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