First case of deadly bird flu reported in SLO County. Here’s how to stop it from spreading

After killing millions of birds nationwide, the most dangerous bird flu in a dozen years —the highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) — has arrived in San Luis Obispo County.

A sick Canada goose was found near Laguna Lake in San Luis Obispo. The wild bird was disoriented, mentally depressed and had “increased respiratory effort and cloudiness of the eyes, causing impaired vision,” according to Pacific Wildlife Care wildlife veterinarian Shannon Riggs.

The San Luis Obispo County Public Health Department announced on Oct. 20 that the goose had tested positive for HPAI, making it the county’s first official case of the deadly disease.

HPAI has spread through 43 states, and cases of the virus have been reported in 20 or more California counties.

Pacific Wildlife Care, a nonprofit organization that rescues and rehabilitates injured and orphaned wildlife, asks the public to bring sick birds to its center at 1387 Main St. in Morro Bay for assessment. The center is open 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. daily.

PWC executive director Christine Johnson suggested transporting the bird using a cardboard box lined with towels or bedding that does not need to be returned.

If you have to handle the sick bird, you should “wash your hands well and disinfect the area in your car where the bird was located,” Johnson said.

You can also call PWC’s Wildlife Hotline, which is operated by volunteers seven days a week, at 805-543-9453.

Hotline volunteers will provide the most up-to-date information and they may send an HPAI-trained rescue volunteer to assist the animal in distress, Riggs explained in an email.

If the bird is deceased, or suspected of having HPAI, it is sent to the Wildlife Health Laboratory (WHL) in Rancho Cordova, operated by the California Department of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW).

Several other birds have been sent to the WHL for testing, but results are not yet available, Riggs said.

She said that most of those animals have been geese, including Canada geese, crackling geese and greater white-fronted geese.

Bird species that are the most susceptible to HPAI include waterfowl such as ducks and geese and raptors such as hawks and falcons.

However, Riggs said, “Any species could potentially contract or spread this disease. We are learning more about it all of the time.”

According to the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and San Luis Obispo County Public Health, the risk for humans to contract the virus is “very low.”

How SLO County wildlife care center stays safe

According to Johnson, PWC has established specific HPAI protocols in order to keep volunteers and staff safe.

Bird species brought to the center are assessed outdoors in a triage tent.

Volunteers and staff at the center are asked to take “extra precautions,” she explained, by wearing personal protective equipment such as disposable gowns, gloves, booties, face shields and goggles.

They are encouraged to bring a change of clothing and are able to take showers at the center prior to returning home.

The executive director noted via email that some volunteers “have decided not to come in for their shifts until the HPAI has passed.”

That means PWC is “a bit shorthanded at times,” Johnson wrote.

How to help prevent avian flu spread

To help “slow down the spread of HPAI,” Johnson said, community members should “take down bird feeders and bird baths for the next several months during migration season.”

The CDFW reports that the avian flu is “primarily a disease of poultry” such as chickens and turkey and “may cause significant mortality in backyard and commercial flocks.”

The virus is shed in bodily fluids such as respiratory droplets, saliva and feces, so if a wild bird has the virus and flies near a domestic chicken flock, the chickens could be sickened and possibly die, the CDFW explained.

According to the Department of Agriculture (USDA), the virus spreads quickly by direct bird-to-bird contact but can also spread when chickens come into contact with contaminated surfaces or materials such as chicken manure.

The USDA suggests using biosecurity measures to protect domestic flocks.

Fencing chickens, rather than allowing them to graze in the open, can keep them from harm’s way.

“It takes just one contact with this virus to sicken or kill all your birds in a single day,” the USDA said.

How to tell if a bird has HPAI

How can you tell if your chickens have highly pathogenic avian influenza?

The USDA suggests looking for the following signs.

Chickens have a lack of energy or appetite. There is a drop in egg production, or misshapen eggs.

Chickens have a swelling of the eyelids, combs, wattles and shanks.

The domestic birds are gasping for air, and have nasal discharge, coughing and sneezing.

Also, chickens are falling down, have diarrhea or are twisting their heads and necks.

The USDA points out that even healthy-looking chickens may be asymptomatic, and can still spread HPAI.

For more information on preventing avian flu in domestic poultry, visit aphis.usda.gov.

To contact Pacific Wildlife Care, call 805-543-9453, visit pacificwildlifecare.org or email Christine Johnson at christine@pacificwildlifecare.org.