Avian Influenza (Bird Flu) in Ghana: Signs and What to Do First

What bird flu is, and why a backyard flock still matters

Bird flu is an influenza A virus that lives naturally in wild birds, especially water birds. Most of these viruses cause little or no illness in their wild hosts. When they reach domestic poultry, some strains cause only mild signs, the low-pathogenic forms. Others cause the highly pathogenic form, which can kill a flock within days.

Many farmers think bird flu is a problem for big commercial houses only. It is not. A small yard flock can be the first to show signs, because it is the place where a wild bird, a contaminated crate or a visitor from a market can bring the virus in. A yard flock also sits close to neighbours, and trouble in one yard travels to the next.

The disease is a serious risk to people only in rare cases, usually after very close contact with infected birds. That is not a reason to panic. It is a reason to wear gloves, wash your hands and keep children away from sick or dead birds.

The signs that should make you pick up the phone

Signs vary with the strain, the species and the age of the bird. In highly pathogenic outbreaks, some birds die before they show anything at all. Others show a clear set of signs over one to three days. Any combination of the following is a reason to call your vet the same day.

1. Several birds dead within a day or two, with no obvious cause.
2. Swelling of the head, eyelids, face or wattles.
3. Comb and wattles that turn dark, purple or blue.
4. A sudden drop in water and feed intake, with birds sitting apart.
5. A sudden fall in egg production, often with soft or misshapen eggs.
6. Coughing, sneezing, watery eyes or breathing trouble across the flock.
7. Stumbling, circling, or twisted necks.
8. Green or watery diarrhoea spreading through the flock.

Why bird flu looks like other diseases

This is the most important thing to understand. The signs of bird flu overlap with Newcastle disease, infectious bronchitis, fowl cholera, fowl typhoid, infectious coryza and heat stress. A farmer who sees a swollen head and a drop in lay cannot tell which disease it is without a test, and neither can a vet who looks at the birds alone.

The table is not a diagnosis. It shows why the phone call matters more than your guess. Only a laboratory test, usually on swabs or tissue from several birds, can confirm bird flu. Read our Newcastle guide and infectious bronchitis article to see how the differences show up in practice. Fowl typhoid and the salmonella side of the picture are covered in our fowl typhoid and pullorum guide.

The first hour: what to do before the vet arrives

The first hour is about containing the problem, not curing it. Most of the damage from a bird flu scare comes from people moving birds, eggs and equipment around while they wait for advice. Keep everything still.

1. Call your vet and report what you see. Give the number of birds, the number dead, the signs and the time they started.
2. Keep the flock in its house. Do not let birds range out, and do not move birds, eggs, crates or manure off the farm.
3. Limit people. Only the person who cares for the birds should enter the house, and visitors stay out.
4. Use a footbath at the door and a clean set of clothes for the house.
5. Handle dead birds with gloves, put them in a sealed bag and keep them somewhere cool and secure until the vet collects them.
6. Wash your hands with soap and water after touching any bird, and keep food and drink out of the house.

Do not open dead birds yourself. Do not cook or eat birds that died without a vet's diagnosis, and do not sell any bird until your vet has advised you that it is safe to do so. These rules sound obvious. In a panic they are the first thing people break.

Reporting, and why it protects more than your own yard

Suspected bird flu has to be reported to the national veterinary service, usually through your district veterinary office, so that the signs are checked and samples can be tested in a laboratory if needed. Your vet will often make the report, but you should know the route yourself, and you should make the call if you cannot reach your vet.

Reporting feels as if it brings trouble to your door. It does bring checks, and it may bring movement restrictions for a while. It is also how the authorities learn where the virus is and warn the people around it. A farmer who reports early usually has more options than one who waits and then has to explain why the flock died without a call.

Ask your vet now, while things are calm, what the reporting process looks like in your area, what the authorities would expect from you, and what support might be available if birds have to be culled. Those answers are much harder to find on the morning you need them. Our FAQ page covers the general questions farmers ask us, though your vet's answer on reporting comes first.

Wild birds, live markets and the routes into your farm

Bird flu reaches farms by a short list of routes. Wild birds that visit ponds, lagoons and wetlands can carry the virus in their droppings and secretions. Waterfowl, and birds that feed on spilt grain around a yard, are the obvious risk. An open trough or a dirty drinker is an open invitation.

Live bird markets are another route. Birds come from many sources, sit together in crates and leave for many destinations. A flock that takes new birds from a market, or where the owner visits a market in the same boots, carries more risk than one that does not. The same goes for visitors who have been to other farms or markets that day.

Vehicles, feed trucks and crates can carry virus on their tyres, floors and wheels, because dust and feathers stick to them and the virus can survive for a while. Ask every delivery driver to stay outside the house, and clean crates before they come back onto the farm.

• Keep ponds, puddles and standing water out of the birds' reach.
• Cover open feeders and drinkers where you can, and move feed indoors at night.
• Buy birds only from a known source with a health record.
• Keep a visitor log, so you know who has been near the house.

The biosecurity that matters most for bird flu

General biosecurity covers many things. For bird flu, four habits do most of the work, and they are cheap enough for a backyard flock.

• Keep wild birds out. Net or cover open sides where you can, and clear away spilt feed that draws sparrows and doves.
• Control the entrance. One door, one set of boots, a footbath that is refilled, and a visitor rule that everyone understands.
• Stop new birds coming in unchecked. Quarantine new birds away from the flock, and avoid live bird markets during a known alert.
• Protect the water. Clean drinkers often, and keep water sources away from wild bird droppings.

Your vet may add to this list, depending on your area and the alert level. Follow your vet's advice on any change, and ask what the alert level means for moving birds, selling them and receiving visitors. The full biosecurity guide goes into the zone plan and the cleaning routine.

Protecting yourself, your family and your workers

Bird flu rarely infects people. The cases that have happened usually involved very close contact with infected birds, sometimes in households where birds were handled or slaughtered without protection. That is still reason to take simple steps, because the people most at risk are the ones who handle birds every day.

• Wear gloves when you handle sick birds, dead birds, litter or manure during an alert.
• Wear a mask over the nose and mouth when your vet advises it, especially when cleaning a dusty house.
• Wash hands with soap and water after handling birds, eggs and litter, and before eating.
• Do not eat, drink or smoke in the house, and keep children out of the area.
• Cook poultry and eggs thoroughly, and keep raw and cooked food apart.

If anyone in your household has a fever, red eyes, a cough or a sore throat after contact with birds, tell a doctor and tell them about the birds. A quick mention helps the doctor make the right call.

Vaccination: a decision for your vet and the authorities

Vaccines against some bird flu strains exist, and some countries use them under official programmes. Whether they are used in Ghana, on which birds and under what rules is a decision for the national authorities and your vet. It is not something a farmer buys from a shop and gives on impulse.

Vaccination can also change what tests show, because vaccinated birds can make surveillance harder to read. The decision therefore has to be made with the authorities in view. Do not start a bird flu vaccination programme on your own, and do not accept a product from a seller who cannot show you its registration and cold-chain paperwork.

Vaccines do not replace biosecurity. A vaccinated flock in a dirty yard with open access to wild birds is still at risk. The first jobs are still the entrance, the water and the wild birds.

After an outbreak: cleaning, rest and restocking

If bird flu is confirmed, the authorities and your vet will set the steps. In general they include removing and disposing of birds in an approved way, cleaning and disinfecting the house and equipment, and leaving the site empty for a rest period before restocking. Follow your vet's advice on every step, including how carcasses and litter should be disposed of where you live.

Clean in order. Remove birds and litter first, then dust and cobwebs, then wash with detergent, then disinfect, then let everything dry. Disinfectant on a dirty surface does very little. Give the house the full rest period your vet sets, and do not rush to restock because the weather is good or the price is high.

When you restock, buy from a known source with a health record, and quarantine new birds for a while before they mix with the others. The record keeping guide shows what to write down during the clean-out, so the next flock starts with a clear history.

What the hatchery can and cannot tell you

We can tell you where our parent stock comes from. Our hatchery works with European parent stock, and our imports come from the Netherlands, Belgium and Germany. We can tell you which vaccines the chicks received, and we send the batch record so your vet can plan from it. Our chicks are dispatched the day they hatch, in ventilated boxes, and delivery to all 16 regions is confirmed before you pay.

We cannot tell you what is in your neighbour's yard, or what came in on a visitor's shoes last Thursday. A hatchery can be careful and still not be the source of a farm's problem. If you suspect bird flu, call your vet first. Then, if you have questions about the chicks you bought, call us on +233 24 915 1503 or WhatsApp us, and we will help you find the records. You can read more about us on the about page, and place an order here when your flock is ready to restock.

Questions farmers ask