Following the recent outbreaks of Avian Influenza in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), the Ministry of Agricultural and Rural Development has ended its sensitisation programme with poultry farmers in Kuje Area Council and Gwagwalada Area Council, with a warning that illegal poultry farmers that fail to take prevention measures will be shut down.
The Ministry stressed the need for poultry farmers to register their farms in a known organisation, adding that government can close any poultry farms not registered in a known organisation and those that are not taking prevention measures as such can lead in shutting down such farm.
Speaking at the weekend at the sensitisation meeting with poultry farmers on the ongoing epidemic, the Head of Animal Service in FCT- Agric Rural Development secretariat, Dr. Adulugba Regina, restated the importance of sensitisation among poultry farmers, adding that the disease was so crucial to play with.
“If medical doctors can fight Ebola in Nigeria and Ebola is no more, poultry farmers must keep this virus under control. The poultry farmers in Nigeria must not die”, she stated.
In his remarks, Dr Gidado Ahmmed from the Federal Veterinary Department noted that bird flu is a highly infectious and contagious disease of different species of birds such as chiken, ducks, guinea fowl and other birds that lives naturally in the wild, adding that this can be transmitted from infected domestic and wild migratory birds. In order to safeguard the farms, he said biosecurity measures were needed to stop the spread of disease causing organisms.
According to him, some of the measures to be taken is to keep poultry in closed, screened buildings on the farm to prevent the entry of rats, birds and reptiles that can carry the virus into the building, separation of poultry from other animals and from other poultry species, no standing bodies of water on the farm as this can attract wild birds that may be carriers of the virus.
“Controlling the movement of people, animals, equipment, and vehicles into, out of, and within a farm. The farm should be fenced with a footbath containing disinfectant at the gate and entrance of each pen etc.”, he stated.
About The Nigerian Blogger
0 comments :
Post a Comment