From the Lawrence County Cooperative Extension Service:
Poultry Producers, Commercial and Backyard alike, Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza H5N1 has most recently been confirmed in Carter County Oklahoma, about 300 miles from the Arkansas border. Dr, Dustan Clark, extension poultry health veterinarian for the University of Arkansas System Division of Agriculture said “It’s very important that commercial growers follow their integrators’ biosecurity protocols and report any problems to their service tech or company veterinarian,”
Clark recommended five simple biosecurity measures to help keep small flocks in Arkansas safe:
- Keep birds in pens covered with roofs or tarps to prevent exposure to wild bird feces/droppings and to keep poultry away from any pond or other water source that wild waterfowl may visit.
- Keep facilities and equipment clean and in good repair. Change feed and water frequently.
- Quarantine and isolate any new or sick birds from otherwise healthy poultry (minimum of three weeks).
- Keep unnecessary visitors away and keep a record of all necessary visitors. Don’t let visitors come in contact with flocks. If you visit an area where there are waterfowl or poultry, do not visit your own poultry until you change clothes, shoes and wash your hands.
- Recognize signs of illness in poultry and report unusual signs to your local veterinarian, local county extension agent, extension poultry veterinarian, state veterinarian, U.S. Department of Agriculture hotline (1-866-536-7593) or Arkansas AI hotline (501-823-1746).