
Chicken Little Terrorist of the Week: Canadian Ducks The Chicken Little Terrorist of the Week was created to expose the fear mongers who are constantly trying to manipulate the public for increased power and financial gain. [Since these potentially epidemic spreading fowl are something that we are told to fear, these terrifying creatures have the honor of Chicken Little Terrorist of the Week. Please be reminded that this bird flu scare is Science Fiction according to Spain's agriculture minister (also see this article: Experts dismiss scare over bird flu). So who may benefit from us being afraid of sick birds? Rumsfeld Profits From Bird Flu Scare If you believe none of the above and are still afraid, here is one more reason in case you missed it. Roche suspends Tamiflu delivery in Canada, to protect supplies elsewhere H5 avian flu virus found in Maritimes Canada.com \|\| November 27, 2005 HALIFAX -- Officials confirmed Friday that 35 wild birds sampled in the Maritimes tested positive for H5 avian influenza viruses, but said they did not believe any were carrying the virulent strain of H5N1 avain flu responsible for widespread poultry outbreaks in Southeast Asia. The infected birds, mostly black ducks and mallards, were found largely in an area around the Tantramar marshes near the Nova Scotia-New Brunswick border. One positive case was found in Prince Edward Island. All of the birds were said to be in good health, leading scientists to believe they were not carrying the strain that has killed at least 68 people overseas. "I don't call it a concern whatsoever," Dr. Pierre-Yves Daoust of the Atlantic Veterinary College in Charlottetown said Friday. "These are still preliminary results, but 35 of them were positive." But further tests need to be done to fully identify the viruses and conclusively rule out any link to the Asian virus. That testing, which will be done at the National Centre for Foreign Animal Disease in Winnipeg, will include comparing the genetic sequences of the viruses to the Asian H5N1. The Canadian scientists were quick to point out that these results do not indicate any increased threat to human health or commercial poultry flocks. Of 710 birds tested in the Maritimes as part of a national wild bird surveillance program, about 325 were found to be carrying various forms of avian influenza, with 35 of them H5 viruses. One was thought to be carrying an H7 virus, but further tests came back negative. Scientists also said that only six of the 35 positive results were considered strong positives, meaning they are more likely to be confirmed to be positive. Additional testing needs to be done to identify which strains of H5 viruses were found since the nine possible strains can vary widely in their ability to cause disease in poultry or pose a human health threat. The H5 and H7 viruses were the first officials looked for because some viruses of these subtypes are highly pathogenic -- meaning they are lethal to chickens and can trigger economically devastating outbreaks in domestic poultry. Smaller numbers of birds infected with H5 and H7 viruses have been found in British Columbia, Manitoba and Quebec as part of the surveillance program. "It sounds a little high to me," Michael Perdue, a scientist and avian influenza expert with the World Health Organization, said of the 35 H5 viruses found. "(But) you never know. Sampling at different times of the year, you get different patterns in different birds." Perdue explained that preliminary findings may have been influenced by the fact that some subtypes of avian influenzas cross-react with each other in some types test -- meaning one subtype might actually test positive as another. Scientists on the East Coast said they expected this many birds would test positive for the H5 strain, since the birds have long been thought to carry it and a host of other viruses. "We want people to be aware that it was really as expected and there's no connection with the pathogenic European strain that we can see at this point," said Dr. Gordon Finley of the Nova Scotia Department of Agriculture and Fisheries. "The common viruses that are in North America in ducks have been here for 100 years. It's just that no one bothered looking before." Finley added that if the strain was the same or similar to the highly pathogenic one in Europe or Asia, the ducks would likely have been dead or in ill health. About KDR \| \| Home \| \| Weekly Features Archive	Weekly Weekly Features Archive
In Depth The Number 1 Reason YOU became a Slave Coming Soon: 9-11 Liberals, Conservatives and NDP
Archive September 2005 October November 2005 30 31 01 02 03 04 05 06 07 08 09 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 01 02 03 Weekly Features

Chicken Little Terrorist of the Week:
Canadian Ducks

The Chicken Little Terrorist of the Week was created to expose the fear mongers who are constantly trying to manipulate the public for increased power and financial gain.

[Since these potentially epidemic spreading fowl are something that we are told to fear, these terrifying creatures have the honor of Chicken Little Terrorist of the Week. Please be reminded that this bird flu scare is Science Fiction according to Spain's agriculture minister (also see this article: Experts dismiss scare over bird flu).

So who may benefit from us being afraid of sick birds? Rumsfeld Profits From Bird Flu Scare

If you believe none of the above and are still afraid, here is one more reason in case you missed it. Roche suspends Tamiflu delivery in Canada, to protect supplies elsewhere

H5 avian flu virus found in Maritimes

Canada.com || November 27, 2005

HALIFAX -- Officials confirmed Friday that 35 wild birds sampled in the Maritimes tested positive for H5 avian influenza viruses, but said they did not believe any were carrying the virulent strain of H5N1 avain flu responsible for widespread poultry outbreaks in Southeast Asia.

The infected birds, mostly black ducks and mallards, were found largely in an area around the Tantramar marshes near the Nova Scotia-New Brunswick border. One positive case was found in Prince Edward Island.

All of the birds were said to be in good health, leading scientists to believe they were not carrying the strain that has killed at least 68 people overseas.

"I don't call it a concern whatsoever," Dr. Pierre-Yves Daoust of the Atlantic Veterinary College in Charlottetown said Friday. "These are still preliminary results, but 35 of them were positive."

But further tests need to be done to fully identify the viruses and conclusively rule out any link to the Asian virus. That testing, which will be done at the National Centre for Foreign Animal Disease in Winnipeg, will include comparing the genetic sequences of the viruses to the Asian H5N1.

The Canadian scientists were quick to point out that these results do not indicate any increased threat to human health or commercial poultry flocks.

Of 710 birds tested in the Maritimes as part of a national wild bird surveillance program, about 325 were found to be carrying various forms of avian influenza, with 35 of them H5 viruses. One was thought to be carrying an H7 virus, but further tests came back negative.

Scientists also said that only six of the 35 positive results were considered strong positives, meaning they are more likely to be confirmed to be positive.

Additional testing needs to be done to identify which strains of H5 viruses were found since the nine possible strains can vary widely in their ability to cause disease in poultry or pose a human health threat.

The H5 and H7 viruses were the first officials looked for because some viruses of these subtypes are highly pathogenic -- meaning they are lethal to chickens and can trigger economically devastating outbreaks in domestic poultry.

Smaller numbers of birds infected with H5 and H7 viruses have been found in British Columbia, Manitoba and Quebec as part of the surveillance program.

"It sounds a little high to me," Michael Perdue, a scientist and avian influenza expert with the World Health Organization, said of the 35 H5 viruses found.

"(But) you never know. Sampling at different times of the year, you get different patterns in different birds."

Perdue explained that preliminary findings may have been influenced by the fact that some subtypes of avian influenzas cross-react with each other in some types test -- meaning one subtype might actually test positive as another.

Scientists on the East Coast said they expected this many birds would test positive for the H5 strain, since the birds have long been thought to carry it and a host of other viruses.

"We want people to be aware that it was really as expected and there's no connection with the pathogenic European strain that we can see at this point," said Dr. Gordon Finley of the Nova Scotia Department of Agriculture and Fisheries.

"The common viruses that are in North America in ducks have been here for 100 years. It's just that no one bothered looking before."

Finley added that if the strain was the same or similar to the highly pathogenic one in Europe or Asia, the ducks would likely have been dead or in ill health.