| |
| |
 |
| |
|
| |
|
| |
|
SINGAPORE: It's not just humans who are getting flu jabs. The Jurong Bird Park is vaccinating its birds to protect them against the bird flu.
Dr Melodiya Magno, a veterinarian at Jurong Bird Park, said: "There's a need to vaccinate the birds in the Bird Park because the danger of bird flu is something that is real. For bird-to-human (transmission), there is a chance, but it can be rare.
"But we are vaccinating (the birds) because...if it (the virus) is transmitted from bird to bird, it can cause a lot of mortalities, like 90 to 100 percent for H5N1."
It costs less than $1,000 to vaccinate all 8,000 birds in the Bird Park every year. But the job is time-consuming and tedious. Still, the Bird Park has been taking this exercise seriously for the past five years.
Dr Magno said: "There is a high possibility that the virus can mutate, that's why we're trying to take preventive measures in controlling other low pathogenic, other less dangerous strain, which is the strain that we are vaccinating against.
"In that way, if we prevent an outbreak from happening (involving the low pathogenic strain), then we can prevent it from mutating to a higher pathogenic strain, perhaps a strain that can infect humans."
The birds are given the H5N2 vaccine that strengthens their immune system by creating antibodies. The Bird Park says this could also increase their chances of survival against the H5N1, commonly known as bird flu.
Besides the vaccine, the birds are also given anti-parasitic medication and vitamin injections to relieve the stress of the vaccination.
Aside from the annual vaccination and bird flu drills, the Bird Park also takes other precautions against the disease.
"We have sentinel chickens in strategic positions in the park, and we collect samples from them. We collect their faeces and blood on a monthly basis to check whether they are carrying viruses," said Dr Magno.
- CNA/ir
|
