The Poultry Association of Nigeria (PAN), Lagos State Chapter, on Thursday urged farmers not to panic over the spread of the Avian Influenza virus in some parts of the country.
Mr Olugbenga Ogunsetan, the General Secretary of the association, said that PAN in conjunction with relevant government agencies were taking measure to contain the virus.
According to him, two live bird markets at Onipanu and Bariga have been fumigated following detection of virus strand there.
He said that the State Veterinary Department carried out the fumigation.
He advised the farmers not to conceal any suspicious mortality of bird in their areas.
Already, he said that some poultry farms and markets have been placed under red alert and surveillance.
"Our farmers should not panic. They should pass the message and should not pass the fear.
"There is nothing to panic about and they should not conceal any information about the virus.
"There are hotlines of the state Veterinary Department in circulation to agribusinesses for prompt reportage of any high mortality in the poultry.
"Lagos is not leaving any stone unturned and we are working in collaboration with the Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development,’’ Ogunsetan said.
He said that surveillance officers have been going round farms to ascertain the health of birds and taking blood samples for test at the National Veterinary Research Institute (NVRI), Vom, in Plateau.
He said that there were abundant signs to show that the birds were infected with the flu.
"The result of the test from the NVRI is just a confirmatory report, but there are visible signs that you can see to suspect that a bird is having the virus.
"Once you suspect that, then you can do post mortem test that will give further information.
"But in the interim, once there is suspicion and test confirm it, we go into action by quarantine affected birds and fumigate the place,’’ Ogunsetan said.
The Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development, Dr Akinwumi Adesina, had on Tuesday confirmed arrival of the virus in Lagos last week and had spread to seven states.
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