XPost: can.politics, van.general, vic.general   
   From: Paxca@nyet.ca   
      
   QMI Agency - Dec 2, 2014   
      
      
   Bird flu found on Canadian farms   
      
   VANCOUVER - An avian flu that's affected 18,000 birds in the Fraser Valley has   
   health officials hunting for a connection between two farms located eight   
   kilometres apart.   
      
   An Abbotsford, B.C., turkey farm and a broiler breeder farm in Chilliwack,   
   B.C., are now under quarantine after confirmation of an H5-strain of avian   
   influenza, the Canadian Food Inspection Agency reported Tuesday.   
      
   Just under half of the birds have already died from exposure to the virus,   
   while the rest will be euthanized.   
      
   Health officials are yet to determine the source of the virus and the   
   connection between the two farms, said Jane Pritchard, B.C.'s chief veterinary   
   officer.   
      
   "There will be all kinds of investigations to see whether there were personnel   
   that moved between the two barns, but at this time there is nothing," she said.   
   "I don't think we can even safely say whether this points to either migratory   
   birds or the possibility of some interaction that we're not aware of at this   
   point."   
      
   The 11,000 turkeys were almost three months old, raised in preparation for   
   demand around the Christmas season, Pritchard said.   
      
   Risks to humans are low, with bird flu rarely affecting people who don't have   
   consistent contact with infected birds, said Harpreet Kochhar, Canada's chief   
   veterinary officer. These viruses do not pose food safety risks when poultry   
   products are properly handled and cooked, he added.   
      
   Testing is underway to determine the exact strain and whether it's related to   
   the H5N1 flu that broke out earlier this year, said Kochhar.   
      
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