Biosecurity – whilst this is obvious, good biosecurity is essential. Wheel wash/spray on entry to the farm and any area’s feed/egg lorries will go. Change foot dips every day, change footwear over every barrier and wear overalls and wash and sanitise your hands when in the bird area. It’s also important that footwear is clean – disinfectant is not effective on contaminated boots.
It is worth investing in house specific tools and equipment so that there is no need to move them between houses and where possible personnel should not visit multiple houses on any given day. Dogs should not access the general biosecurity area, as this makes all your other provisions worthless.
Rainwater – assume the virus is everywhere, therefore when it rains there is the potential for the rainwater to wash AI into shed. Make sure there are no holes in the roof, leaking gutters, seeping flood water, drips through the popholes……even a drip could contain enough virus to infect a flock of birds. This is a real challenge to producers keeping birds in mobile houses. I’ve seen producers dig ditches around the shed to take water away from the birds or use sandbags to prevent water running underneath into the scratch.
Visitors – only permit essential visitors into the bird area, and even if they are essential ask what bird contact they have had in the previous 72 hours. Don’t be afraid to say no! It is also worth thinking about who accesses the birds on farm, and how many times a day are actually required.
Vermin/wild birds – we never want rats and mice, but it’s more important than ever to keep them out of sheds now. Some of the best pest control officers are farmers…. purely because they have a vested interest in getting it right and monitor the situation regularly.
What can we do about wild birds? Very little but we can make sure they cannot access the house, which may require the netting of ventilation inlets. Also make sure there is nothing for wild birds to eat anywhere near the unit.
Litter – where possible do not add extra litter to the scratch area. If it is essential or for a new flock it should have been stored in a clean and dry area and ideally wrapped to reduce the risk of contamination from wild birds or water.
Enrichment – Similarly to litter, enrichment should be stored in a dry secure building and sprayed with disinfectant before giving it to the birds.
Training – It’s really important that all staff, family, visitors and suppliers abide by your rules to prevent AI entering your business, therefore taking time to make sure everyone understands your expectations is a really good idea, ideally signing to acknowledge their understanding.
Obviously, none of this means you won’t get AI, but if we do what we can and reduce the chances, we might prevent a few outbreaks.