Summer is just around the corner and with it comes farm tours, petting zoos, and even goat yoga in the park. But with cases of bird flu on the rise, Canadians might be wondering: Is it safe to go near goats, chickens and cows?
The H5N1 avian flu strain is a zoonotic disease that can pass from animals to humans. This raises concerns about the impact these summer agricultural activities could have on public health.
While avian flu has infected more than 90 dairy herds in the United States, causing three human cases since March, Canada has so far been spared. Here, the virus has been detected in birds and some mammals, such as seals and foxes, but so far cattle, goats and humans have not been affected.
But that doesn’t mean we should let our guard down, cautioned Shayan Sharif, professor and associate dean of the Ontario Veterinary College at the University of Guelph.
“I’m not going to say we should avoid going to zoos or zoos in general, but I would say try to minimize exposure in whatever form possible,” he told Global News.
“The reality is that this virus has spread to many different species of birds and mammals. More than 350 different species of birds have been infected, nearly 60 different species of mammals have been infected, and approximately 13 or 14 marine mammals have been infected. This virus has therefore proven us wrong on several occasions.
Even though the virus has not spread to cows, humans or goats in Canada, Sharif says it would be unwise to assume it cannot.
Despite the low risk of avian flu in Canada, the intensifying spread south of the border has prompted the Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) to step up its surveillance efforts. This includes milk testing at grocery stores and mandatory negative tests for lactating dairy cattle imported from the United States.
Data compiled by the CFIA shows there are 3,137 confirmed and suspected cases of avian flu in animals across Canada as of Friday – the most recent case occurred on June 11, found in a red fox died in Prince Edward Island.
Goats, cattle and chickens. What is the status?
Since chickens, goats and cattle are susceptible to bird flu, which can be spread through close contact, Sharif advised exercising caution when interacting with these animals.
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Regarding poultry, he said that bird flu manifests itself quickly. This means that if a chicken in a petting zoo contracts bird flu, it will likely immediately exhibit symptoms like lethargy.
“Chickens are very sensitive. So usually, before we know it, they show clinical signs and succumb to the disease,” he said. “So most likely, if there’s a chicken in a petting zoo, I would say the chicken is probably not positive, but if the chicken doesn’t look good and looks very sick, so I would be very careful about exposure. »
Sharif pointed out that activities like goat yoga or petting cows on a farm can carry a risk, as these ruminants can carry the virus without showing symptoms and potentially excrete it through their milk or even mucous secretions.
“Goats and cattle can actually carry the virus without showing clinical signs, so they can remain asymptomatic,” he said.
Summer activities like petting zoos, farm tours, and even goat yoga can increase your exposure to animals. However, Sharif stressed that the risk of bird flu transmission to humans remains relatively low.
“At the moment it is still possible to move forward,” he said, emphasizing the importance of practicing good hygiene, especially when dealing with children, pregnant people or immunocompromised people.
The warning is not just due to bird flu.
He points out that cattle and chickens can carry various microbes without showing any signs of illness. These microbes can still be quite pathogenic and potentially lead to diseases, sometimes even serious, in humans.
“I personally wouldn’t recommend petting animals, but that’s just me,” he said.
But if you do, he said to make sure you sanitize your hands.
Toronto Public Health echoes this concern. Because animals can sometimes carry disease-causing germs, such as E. coli and salmonella, petting zoos can pose a risk to certain groups. It advises people with weakened immune systems, pregnant women and infants under one year old to avoid contact with animals.
And young children, prone to touching their faces, should also avoid contact with reptiles, amphibians, birds and young animals, the document says.
The situation regarding bird flu could also change, Sharif warned. Although this has not been detected in Canadian cattle or goats, if it did occur, he stressed the need to minimize exposure and possibly use personal protective equipment (PPE) – lessons we would have had to come from COVID-19.
“This virus has proven to be quite unpredictable in terms of how it jumps from one species to another. So we really want to minimize that exposure,” he said.
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