Poultry Growers Prepared For The Worst Strain Of Avian Flu

BALTIMORE (WJZ) -- Poultry growers are preparing for the worst, as a lethal strain of Avian flu is expected to make it to Maryland this fall.

Alex DeMetrick reports, millions of chickens and turkeys died in the Midwest.

The East Coast could be next.

The signs are up at Maryland poultry farms, limiting access to protect flocks inside chicken houses, from this the destruction of 48 millions birds on farms inn the midwest this past spring, during an outbreak of a lethal strain of Avian influenza.

"If we has Avian influenza, the economic impact would be devastating on Maryland," said Jenny Rhodes of Deerfield Farm in Centerville.

That's because the poultry industry directly generates over a billion dollars annually. Another 1.5 billion by support industries like feed, fuel and transportation.

"Don't prepare for if, prepare for when, because in all likelihood it will be coming,"  Joe Bartenfelder, of the Maryland Department of Agriculture said.

It will be carried in the feces of wildfowl migrating south for the winter. Flyways in the west and midwest were hot, the east will be next.

"A goose or a duck could fly over and poop and that's how it gets spread," said Rhodes.

And it spreads like wildfire in poultry operations.

"Withing five days, 95 percent of them are dead. So it's very, very devastating," said state veterinarian Dr. Mike Radebaugh.

Because the virus can be carried on shoes, farms use disinfectant foot baths.

Equipment is also treated and not just farm machinery.

"Because there's lots of germs on our phones, they're everywhere,"  Rhodes said. "We also wear gloves everyday. We buy disposable gloves by the bucket."

While commercial growers have been preparing for outbreak, there is worry about smaller flocks.

"One of the big concerns is what we call the backyard flocks, which are very popular," said Bartenfelder.

Unless bio security measures are taken in those backyards -- "you could carry it to a local convenience store and then a commercial grower could go in there and carry it back on their shoes," he added. "That's why you take all the bio-security measures as possible."

Protecting what's inside from what's coming.

This strain of Avian flu, while deadly to most birds, is not believed to be a health risk.