Bird flu and H9 in broilers: farm gate rules that protect you

H9 is a type of bird flu that has been circulating in Pakistani poultry for over two decades, and it spreads from farm to farm on people, vehicles, crates and dead birds. You cannot treat your way out of it, so the real protection is the farm gate: few visitors, clean shoes and hands, no outside birds or crates near the shed, and dead birds buried or burnt, never thrown away. If many birds die very suddenly, report it to your vet and the livestock department at once.

H9 and bird flu in Pakistan

Avian influenza (bird flu) is caused by influenza viruses. They are named by type, such as H5, H7 and H9.

• H9 (H9N2) is called low pathogenic. Researchers have reported it in Pakistani poultry since the late 1990s, and studies of commercial broiler flocks in Punjab describe it as well established. On its own it often causes moderate illness, but it rarely comes alone: together with E. coli, Mycoplasma or Newcastle disease, deaths can climb high.
• Highly pathogenic types (H5, H7) are much more dangerous. Pakistan has had outbreaks of these in the past. They can kill most of a flock within a day or two, and suspected cases must be reported to the livestock department.

You cannot tell these apart, or tell them from Newcastle disease, by looking at birds. Only a lab test can.

Signs to watch for

H9, often with other infections:

• Sneezing, coughing, rattling breathing, watery eyes.
• Swelling around the eyes or face in some birds.
• Birds dull, eating and drinking less.
• Green or white watery droppings.
• Deaths rising over several days, often worse in winter and in poorly ventilated sheds.

Signs that could mean highly pathogenic bird flu:

• A sudden, very high number of deaths, sometimes with few signs before.
• Bluish or dark combs and wattles, swollen heads.
• Bleeding spots on the shanks.
• Birds almost stop eating and drinking.

How the virus reaches your shed

The virus is in droppings, saliva and nasal fluid of infected birds. It travels on:

• People: brokers, catchers, vaccinators, feed delivery men, neighbours, your own workers coming back from another farm or a bird market.
• Vehicles: broker trucks and pickups that go to many farms in one day.
• Crates, trays and sacks from other farms or the mandi.
• Wild birds and pigeons, and backyard chickens near the farm.
• Dead birds thrown into canals, fields or near the road.
• Dust and feathers carried by wind from a nearby infected farm.

Farm gate rules

Write these on a board at the gate and train every worker.

One gate, kept closed

• One entry to the farm, locked or watched. Other openings closed.
• A visitors' book: name, date, last farm visited.
• No visitors who have been on another poultry farm or bird market the same day, unless it is truly necessary.

Shoes, clothes and hands

• Farm shoes or boots that never leave the farm, and a change of clothes or overalls for anyone entering a shed.
• A foot dip at each shed door. Change the disinfectant often, as dirt and sun make it weak; a dip full of mud does nothing.
• Hand washing with soap before and after entering sheds.

Vehicles and crates

• Broker trucks and feed vehicles stop outside the gate. If a vehicle must enter, spray the wheels and underside with disinfectant.
• Catching crates should arrive clean. Do not keep other farms' crates on your farm.
• Catchers change shoes and wash hands before entering.

Birds and pests

• No backyard chickens, ducks or pigeons kept on the broiler farm.
• Net open sides and gaps so wild birds cannot get in.
• Store feed in closed bags or rooms, clean up spills, and control rats and mice.
• All in, all out: one age of birds, full cleaning and rest time before the next batch.

Workers

• Workers who keep birds at home are a risk. Ask them to change clothes and wash before work.
• If you run several farms, the same worker should not go between them on the same day, or should always go from the youngest flock to the oldest, with shoes and clothes changed. Read managing farm staff and supervisors for setting daily duties.

Dead bird disposal

How you handle dead birds decides whether one sick flock becomes ten.

1. Collect dead birds at least twice a day, more during an outbreak.
2. Put them in a closed bag or container, not an open basket.
3. Bury them in a deep pit on the farm, away from wells, hand pumps, canals and low ground that floods. Cover each layer with lime and then soil so dogs and crows cannot dig them up.
4. Or burn them completely in a proper burner.
5. Never throw them in a canal, field or roadside, never feed them to animals and never sell them.
6. Wear gloves and a mask, then wash hands and change shoes.

Vaccination and the vet

Vaccines against H9 are used in Pakistan, often alongside Newcastle vaccination. A vaccine lowers losses but does not stop the virus if biosecurity is weak. Whether your broilers need an H9 vaccine, and at what age, is a decision for you and your vet; see our broiler vaccination schedule guide for the questions to ask. Because H9 makes Newcastle worse, also read Newcastle disease (Ranikhet).

Antibiotics do not kill the flu virus. Your vet may treat secondary bacterial infections; do not start medicines on your own.

Protect yourself and your family

• Wear gloves and a mask when handling sick or dead birds.
• Wash hands with soap after shed work, before eating.
• Keep children away from sick birds.
• If you or a worker get a fever, cough or eye infection after a bird flu outbreak on the farm, see a doctor and tell them you work with poultry.

Writing every visitor, vehicle and daily death in Poultry Curve gives you a record that helps your vet trace where a problem came from. You can ask Helper to turn the gate rules above into a daily checklist for your staff.