Cooler nights and dropping leaves signal the change in seasons is upon us.
Unfortunately, the seasonal movement of migratory waterfowl (such as ducks and geese) can put poultry flocks at risk for disease. Luckily, the risk of flock exposure to Avian Influenza (AI), and other poultry diseases, can be reduced by following certain precautions recommended by Tyson Foods.
Biosecurity is critical to prevention and control of disease and to the overall security of your farm. Please remember the following biosecurity and farm security recommendations:
- Stay vigilant to keep unwanted visitors from gaining access to your property and potentially spreading disease. Please report any unusual activity on your farm to your live production department and, if appropriate, law enforcement.
- One of the best ways to prevent disease from coming onto your farm is to keep farm-only footwear. Ideally, keep farm footwear at the entrance to each chicken house to avoid potentially tracking disease into the house from the outside. Footpans and boot dips can help, but having farm-specific footwear for your houses is the most effective measure.
- Wild waterfowl are the most common source of AI and you should avoid contact with any waterfowl (including feathers and fecal matter) as much as possible. Bird hunting is discouraged, but should you go hunting, you should avoid direct contact with the birds on your farm for 72 hours. Please discuss with your live production department.
- Avoid other poultry farms and sharing of equipment. Do not grant unauthorized visitors access to your farm. Do not allow equipment repairmen on farms without knowledge of where they have been and without proper biosecurity apparel. Make sure any caretakers do not have contact with other farms or non-Tyson poultry. Please assume any backyard or exhibition chicken will test positive for diseases that are dangerous for our birds.
Please report unusual mortality, water consumption or production drops to your service tech. These are usually the first signs of any poultry disease.
We appreciate your attention to these important issues and all you do to provide healthy chickens, raised with care.