If you watch or read the news regularly, you’ve probably heard of bird flu, otherwise known as avian influenza. Bird flu is a contagious disease of animals; the viruses infect mainly birds and occasionally pigs. On rare occasions, the virus has crossed over to infect humans. There are 23 different variations of the influenza A virus. Only a few of these subtypes can cause serious illness in poultry. The variety that is causing the most upset is the “highly pathogenic” form, which can cause high mortality rates in a domestic flock of poultry in a very short amount of time. … Continue reading →