Agri dept working on bird flu in Western Cape

The bird flu strain was detected on an Ostrich farm near Oudtshoorn, Western Cape on Tuesday, 9 April 2013.

Departmental spokesperson Steve Galane told SAnews bird flu experts were already conducting tests in the laboratories to assess its pandemic potential.

"... As a national Department, we are already working with the local farmers and the provincial department of Agriculture to contain the spread of bird flu.

"We are currently in the process of analysing what has been detected in the Ostrich farm and we are hopeful that the samples of the tests will be released on Friday," he said.

Galane urged South Africans not to panic as the strain was detected only on the Ostrich farm in the Western Cape. "We are appealing to people not to panic about the spread of the latest detection of the avian influenza virus in the Western Cape..."

The avian (bird) influenza (flu) viruses occur naturally among birds. Bird flu is very contagious among birds and can make some domesticated birds, including chickens, Ostrich and ducks, very sick and kill them.

Bird flu viruses do not usually infect humans, but several cases of human infection with bird flu viruses have occurred since 1997.

Infected birds shed flu virus in their saliva, nasal secretions, and feces (droppings).

Susceptible birds become infected when they have contact with contaminated excretions or surfaces that are contaminated with excretions.

It is believed that most cases of bird flu infection in humans have resulted from contact with infected poultry or contaminated surfaces.

However, there is no evidence of human-to-human transmission so far.