22 Aug 2023
Three organisations – the British Veterinary Zoological Society, RSPCA and Scottish SPCA – have joined forces to produce a guidance document to help wildlife rehabilitation centres dealing with the virus.
Allister Webb
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Image: © byrdyak / Adobe Stock
Veterinary sector professionals and bodies are being urged to work more closely together to curb the continuing threat posed by avian influenza (AI).
Several new cases of the virus have now been confirmed in England and Scotland in recent weeks, and concerns remain about the potential risk arising from increased interactions between captive and wild birds.
Three organisations – the British Veterinary Zoological Society (BVZS), RSPCA and Scottish SPCA – have now joined forces to produce a guidance document to help wildlife rehabilitation centres that are dealing with the virus.
A six-member working group was set up to lead development of the paper, which they hope will encourage greater understanding of and closer working on the issue.
BVZS council and working group member Elliott Simpson-Brown said: “Avian Influenza is here to stay.
“If we are to safeguard our privilege to be able to work with the incredible array of wildlife we have in the UK and associated ever-evolving disease threats, then it is vital that all sectors of the veterinary industry and representative bodies work proactively and collaboratively to ensure continued safe and sustainable procedures are in place.”
The paper also argues that official advice from government departments and agencies cannot be directly applied to individual facilities.
It continues: “Guidance is therefore needed to help wildlife centres protect themselves, limit potential losses and minimise disruption in the event of the admission of a bird infected with AI.
“This guidance can also help for future-proofing locations by providing guidance to assist with the construction of new facilities.”
The release of the guidance follows confirmation of a number of new cases in the past few weeks – particularly in Scotland.
Five incidents have been reported north of the border since 8 August, while a temporary control zone was declared around separate premises in Dumfries and Galloway on 15 August, where the virus is also suspected to be present.
In England, restrictions remain in place around a commercial poultry site near Elham, Kent, after AI was confirmed there on 20 July.
Officially, the risk to captive birds from the virus is currently assessed as low, with increasing confidence where stringent biosecurity measures are in place.
But the threat is still classed as high for wild birds and, with Defra also cautioning about the potential consequences of greater interaction between wild and captive birds, the paper argues centres may need to adopt stricter admission protocols at certain points.
It said: “During periods of ‘medium’ to ‘very high’ risk in wild birds, it may be prudent to cease admissions of species of birds at the highest risk of infection.
“There should be awareness that in periods of exceptionally high disease incidence in a localised area, species usually considered to be of an unknown or low risk will be more likely to be exposed to and subsequently carry infection.
“It is essential for admission policies based on species risk to be regularly reviewed and updated.
“Admission policies should be constructed in such a way that wildlife rehabilitation centres can easily react to changes in national or local disease risk with respect to AI with appropriate and timely changes in all aspects of biosecurity protocols.”
Scottish SPCA senior vet Liam Reid said there had been a “devastating” impact on the country’s breeding seabirds, waterfowl and birds of prey as a result of the virus.
He said the groups hoped “our collective experience can help other organisations to prepare their own contingency plans and mitigate the varied challenges posed by this disease”.
RSPCA chief vet Caroline Allen added: “The emergence and spread of the current strain of AI has created even more challenges for those involved in the rehabilitation of wild birds, as well as those keeping collections of rare bird species.
“We are delighted to have been able to work closely with veterinary colleagues from the BVZS and Scottish SPCA, along with the support and insight from many others to produce this guidance document.”
The full paper is available here.
