Columbian 3 Posted February 22 Thank you, ellasflock. Best wishes. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
mullethunter 570 Posted February 22 Thanks Ellasflock - really good news. I think ‘high risk’ areas tend to be where there are large populations of migratory birds - usually waterfowl so estuaries, large lakes etc. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Columbian 3 Posted February 23 I haven’t been able to find any information about lifting restrictions other than that quoted in Vet Times; has anyone seen an announcement or can provide a link? Thank you. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Patricia W 326 Posted February 23 (edited) Nothing from DEFRA yet so don’t open the champagne ( and the run door!) yet. Might still be wishful thinking. Even if it happens, I suspect that bordering the Thames where I am will remain high risk. Edited February 23 by Patricia W Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
ellasflock 29 Posted February 23 Yes I couldn’t see anything else but i thought I would share that just to keep everyone’s hopes up x Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Cat tails 851 Posted February 23 Maybe because the article is from 2017!!! 😒 So keep your chickens in people! @Columbian @ellasflock 1 Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
ellasflock 29 Posted February 23 Oh well that is annoying! I was looking for some indication about the Avian flu being lifted in April and came across this article so I’m sorry if I got peoples hopes up. Hopefully the gov will publish something soon. I certainly wasn’t going to let my chickens out before I was 100% certain. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Columbian 3 Posted February 23 OH b****r! I hadn’t spotted that. No wonder I couldn’t find anything else about the end of Avian Flu restrictions. Let’s hope that it will be soon. 1 Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Patricia W 326 Posted February 23 It didn’t happen then either. In the end it wasn’t lifted till April. With the news of the H5N8 variant jumping the species barrier from Chicken to human I think we should expect much more stringent monitoring in the future Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Cat tails 851 Posted February 23 A number of people in Russia are reported to have caught avian flu recently. There are still outbreaks in the Netherlands this week. Don’t expect any restrictions being lifted soon. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Patricia W 326 Posted February 23 No, I think we’re looking April at the earliest. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
ellasflock 29 Posted February 23 Yes I have heard of this too, Lots of Russian people have come down with it. However, I am not too surprised that Russia is the first because they are one of the top 10 countries in the world for keeping chickens, breeding them and for commercial reasons too. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Cat tails 851 Posted February 23 10 minutes ago, ellasflock said: However, I am not too surprised that Russia is the first because they are one of the top 10 countries in the world for keeping chickens, breeding them and for commercial reasons too. China, Brazil and the US keep many times the amount of poultry compared to Russia. Compared population density and number of birds, the Netherlands tops all those easily. The first person ever to die from avian flu was a Dutch vet The reason Russia is more susceptible for outbreaks is that they are on most mainland migration routes of wild birds and Russia has year round avian flu pockets, because of those wild birds. 8 minutes ago, ellasflock said: Yes I have heard of this too, Lots of Russian people have come down with it. And it’s 7 people, not lots. I’m all for sharing information, but it is more important than ever to be careful with the information we share. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
ellasflock 29 Posted February 23 I meant because of the severity of Avian Bird Flu, 7 to me is a lot. But I certainly understand what you mean and yes information can be miss understood as I can’t see an article that says the exact amount. That is interesting about mainland migration routes! Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Cat tails 851 Posted February 23 www.bbc.com/news/amp/world-europe-56140270 It mentions the 7 workers here. 1 Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
ellasflock 29 Posted February 23 thank you, I will give this a read! Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
mullethunter 570 Posted February 23 4 hours ago, Cat tails said: Maybe because the article is from 2017!!! 😒 Oh no!!! I usually notice things like that 🙄😂 2 hours ago, Cat tails said: And it’s 7 people, not lots. I’m all for sharing information, but it is more important than ever to be careful with the information we share. Agree 100% 1 Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
tinkkletoes 0 Posted Saturday at 11:41 AM Yep, my girls have had enough as well, one of my caged rescue girls started very friendly when all of the run was available, but recently has become a bully of one of my much loved old girls, so had to put a bumpa bit on her. And only a small part of the run has been taken away, but it's the bushes & tree area they love being in as getting netting over was imposable. but they do have a large net covered run still. is there any news on the hen lockdown coming to an end ? i remember when it all started March was mentioned but was that start or end of the month ? also i cant get the the bush/tree area to do the spring pruning as well, but that's not so important to my 5 girls health & safety...... Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
mullethunter 570 Posted Saturday at 09:13 PM I’ve had 4 escapes from the chicken tunnels today so I’ve had to go around re-fixing the edges. I think now they’re all coming into lay and hormones are kicking in they’re more eager to get back out than they have been over the last few months. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Columbian 3 Posted Saturday at 10:16 PM I cannot find any references to an end date for the AF restrictions, so depressing. I do hope that it will be soon. Mine have been in lay for some weeks now and seem to lay an egg every-other day. They are certainly keener to get outside as the weather is improving. I’ve built a little extension and netted it so that they can be on grass otherwise I was cutting some turf every day for them to demolish. I can see that in a couple of weeks the grass will be no longer and I haven’t many options for positioning the new fenced area. I had one force its way out but it quickly went back in when I lifted some of the netting; now all pegged down. The chicken at the bottom of the pecking order is getting very nervous as she is picked on by everyone. I feel so sorry for her. One of the bullies waits at the top of the steps when they go to bed and attacks her as she tries to go in. I think that this behaviour has been exacerbated by their confinement for so long. It really annoys me when the chicken at the bottom of the pecking order just lowers her head and waits to be pecked, all submissive. This being shut in is not good for them. I’ve had the feather-pecker confined to a separate part of the run since mid December but she is now in with the others since they can go outside a bit. I’m hoping that she has forgotten her nasty habit; I saw one demonstration of this on two of the others but it was half-hearted and I’ve not seen it since. Time will tell - as will bare heads. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Patricia W 326 Posted Sunday at 05:24 PM It’s looking like April at the earliest. This is the worst outbreak for over 20 years. If you’ve tried everything else for your feather pecker, fit a bumpa bit. You can get them from Clare Taylor, The Handy Hen, plus a video on how to fit. Go to www.claretaylor.com Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Girly 50 Posted 6 hours ago This article is out of date and so does not refer to the current situation. Don’t let your girls out yet! Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites