1-bad-57
10 posts
Apr 23, 2006
7:55 AM
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Yahoo news has a story on their news web site that says that pigeons are not a threat to pass on the bird flu. Aparently there is almost a zero chance of a pigeon contracting it in the wild and they seem to have an imunity to it.
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Swamp Fox
63 posts
Apr 23, 2006
8:42 AM
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If this is true, and I hope it is, this is great news for all piegon fanciers!!!
Marion
Last Edited by Swamp Fox on Apr 23, 2006 8:42 AM
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C.J.
129 posts
Apr 23, 2006
11:47 AM
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1-bad-57 If it is the same article that I read it didn't say they didn't carry it. It stated they weren't immune but it would take a case of high doses for them to carry it and that they didn't carry it very long or always catch it. Which in turn made them a very low risk of spreading a virus.These tests were all a result of a young 14 year old pigeon seller in Iraq dying suddenly. They were worried that he may have contracted the deadly H5N1 virus. So officials started studying it more closely. It is also said that pigeons don't catch it uniformly and those who do tend to carry it for only ten days. This is all great news.To read the entire article go to http://www.mercurynews.com/mld/mercurynews/news/politics/14411859.htm
C.J.
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Shaun
354 posts
Apr 23, 2006
11:50 AM
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Marion, over in England we've had our fair share of bird flu stories - especially now it's here! Pigeons have been an obvious source of concern, given the sheer number of ferals in cities - and our cities are often quite close together, compared to the US. The consenus seems to be that pigeons, along with a good number of other birds, are nowhere near as susceptible to the H5N1 virus, as poultry. However, tests have been done on both pigeons and other birds, which proved they could be given the virus and could carry it, without actually succumbing to its deadly syptoms in the way poultry has. So, for now at least, pigeons are way down the target list of birds which the UK needs to avoid close contact with. This state of affairs could, of course, change.
Shaun
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Swamp Fox
64 posts
Apr 23, 2006
5:08 PM
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1-bad-57, CJ, and Shaun. Good posts and great info. Appreciate it.
Marion
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Outlaw Vizsla
6 posts
Apr 23, 2006
6:11 PM
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And now ABC is jumping on the band wagon and sensationalizing the problem.
"The network has scheduled a movie called "Fatal Contact: Bird Flu in America" for Tuesday, May 9. The "meticulously researched" two-hour film will tell the story of an avian flu outbreak in the United States, the people affected by it and those trying to stop it."
-Matt
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