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CANADA DETECTS H1N1 IN ALBERTA SWINE

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Anonymous

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http://www.usda.gov/2009/05/0142.xml

Release No. 0142.09
Contact:
Chris Mather (202) 257-8446

STATEMENT FROM SECRETARY VILSACK ON CANADA DETECTION OF H1N1 IN ALBERTA SWINE

May 2, 2009

"I received word this afternoon that Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) officials have tentatively confirmed that swine from a herd in Alberta, Canada, have tested positive for the H1N1 strain currently causing illness in humans. A Canadian carpenter who had been in Mexico, upon return, was exhibiting flu-like symptoms, did work on the Alberta farm, and subsequently the family and swine on the farm became ill.

First and foremost, this detection does not change the situation here in the United States:

- There have been no reports that the novel H1N1 strain currently causing illness in humans is in U.S. swine.

- This is not a foodborne illness. The American food supply is safe and pork and pork products are safe. As is the case with all meat and poultry, safe handling and cooking practices should be used to kill any germs or bacteria that could make you sick.

- As a precaution, people with flu-like symptoms should not interact with swine, and swine showing influenza symptoms should be kept away from the public and brought to the attention of the State Animal Health Authorities or USDA. Proper biosecurity measures - as in any influenza situation - will protect against the spread of virus.

Additional details about the Alberta situation are that no sick swine have left the farm, and the animals and premises have been quarantined. The swine and humans are recovering and appear healthy. We are working closely with our CFIA counterparts to be kept abreast of the situation, and will await the final confirmatory test results, which could take anywhere from 5 days to 2 weeks. Canada has handled this situation appropriately and taken the necessary steps and precautions.

Here in the United States, the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) is actively working to develop an H1N1 vaccine for swine, just as the CDC is doing for humans. It is standard operating procedure at the USDA to send any unusual virus, such as the H1N1 virus, detected through our surveillance network to our labs in Ames, Iowa. Our scientists routinely diagnose animal diseases and develop vaccines to protect livestock and poultry in the United States.

Today's discovery will not impact our borders or trading with Canada. As prescribed by the World Organization for Animal Health guidelines, any trade restrictions must be based on science so at this time, we are awaiting confirmatory test results before considering any action."

#
USDA News
[email protected]
202 720-4623
 
A

Anonymous

Guest
Mrs.Greg said:
hillsdown said:
LMFAO OT ,I knew you would be the first one to post this......
Me too :roll:

Well don't you two laugh it all off- would hate to have you girls constipated- or Mrs. Greg unable to play her bum darts :wink:

Actually I'm a little late as this e-mail came in at 7:15-- and I didn't get it up for a couple of hours....
 

Mrs.Greg

Well-known member
I'm not too worried OT,the virus was found very fast and the Vet's in question quarantined and reported the case right away,AND the only person on that farm that was ill was the worker,and hes resting at HOME. I'm a firm believer the media is blowing this WAY out of proportion. Flu season's almost over and by the time it resumes in the fall a vaccine will be available,obviously for the ones that care to take a flu shot,like ME. I also don't buy all the other crap written about flu shots. Its a dead virus and the person that gets the shot isn't a carrier,I care enough about my children,grandchildren and clients not to want to infect them...but each to their own....
 
A

Anonymous

Guest
Mrs.Greg said:
I'm not too worried OT,the virus was found very fast and the Vet's in question quarantined and reported the case right away,AND the only person on that farm that was ill was the worker,and hes resting at HOME. I'm a firm believer the media is blowing this WAY out of proportion. Flu season's almost over and by the time it resumes in the fall a vaccine will be available,obviously for the ones that care to take a flu shot,like ME. I also don't buy all the other crap written about flu shots. Its a dead virus and the person that gets the shot isn't a carrier,I care enough about my children,grandchildren and clients not to want to infect them...but each to their own....

I totally agree with you...And I've gotten flu shots for 15-20 years and my wife has for much longer, since they advise people who come in contact with many people/ ill people like medical care workers and law enforcement to get them....Since I had a bad case of pneumonia a few years back I've also gotten the pneumonia shot- getting the permanent one this year...And I'm convinced they work/help.....

But how much hysteria will come about when the WHO declares this a stage 6---Pandemic :???:

Mexico has the most confirmed swine flu cases, with 397 infected people and 16 deaths, the WHO said. Mexican Health Minister Jose Angel Cordova Villalobos reported that the country has confirmed 421 cases and 19 deaths.

Several other countries, including Canada and Italy, had confirmed additional cases that had not yet been added to the WHO's total.

The United States has the second-highest number of confirmed cases, with 161 sickened and one death, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the WHO.

President Barack Obama spoke with Mexican President Felipe Calderon on Saturday afternoon to discuss both countries' "efforts to limit the spread of the 2009 H1N1 flu strain and the importance of close U.S.-Mexican cooperation," the White House said in a statement.

Other than Mexico and the United States, the WHO confirmed cases in 14 other countries: Canada, with 51; the United Kingdom with 15; Spain with 13; Germany with six; New Zealand with four; Israel with three; France, with two; and Austria, China, South Korea, Denmark, the Netherlands, Switzerland and Costa Rica, each have one. See where cases have been confirmed »

Ryan said the WHO was still preparing for a pandemic.

"At this point we have to expect that phase six will be reached," he said, referring to the organization's highest pandemic threat level. "We have to hope that it is not reached." And he noted that a pandemic describes "the geographic spread of the disease, not its severity."

There are tho some very interesting stories coming out of the Mexican media tying this flu to the fact that the area it started is a high hog raising/slaughter area with questionable sanitation/enviromental standards being mentioned... This has been denied by the Health/USDA officials--but the Mexican media is not buying it just being coincidental...
 

gcreekrch

Well-known member
One thing about it OT, you won't have to worry about it infecting the U S swine herd.

USDA will make sure of that. :wink:
 

burnt

Well-known member
gcreekrch said:
One thing about it OT, you won't have to worry about it infecting the U S swine herd.

USDA will make sure of that. :wink:

. . . or the NCBA . . . .

. . . or Dubya . . . .

:lol: :lol: :lol:
 

Broke Cowboy

Well-known member
gcreekrch said:
One thing about it OT, you won't have to worry about it infecting the U S swine herd.

USDA will make sure of that. :wink:

Thanks - I just spilled tea all over the damned keyboard and I had to switch to another system - the little Arab guy in the Souk will be happy - he tears them apart, cleans them and charges us a fortune in his money for the service.

Probably going to cost me 50 or so pounds to get it back. (+/-One dollar)

BC
 

Kato

Well-known member
In this country, disease getting into a pig herd is probably a better case scenario than a lot of other livestock operations. These hog barns are already locked down and biosecure as a normal part of their operating procedure. They are also likely the most monitored livestock in the country. Blood testing happens on a regular basis as part of their normal herd health protocols. Even replacement gilts must pass blood tests to be allowed in, and they've all had quality assurance programs for a few years now.

Pigs in these herds do not leave home, unless it's that one way trip to the packers.The flu will not get out of this barn, that's for sure. But it does offer up a great opportunity for research, which I bet will happen right away.
 

hypocritexposer

Well-known member
Canada farm worker 'infects pigs'
BBC ^

Posted on May-03-09 7:34:09 PM by traumer

A herd of pigs in Canada has tested positive for swine flu, apparently after being infected by a farm worker recently returned from Mexico.

The herd, in the western province of Alberta, has been quarantined.

Officials said there was no risk of contracting the illness by consuming pork, and chances of a human getting infected by a pig were remote.

Meanwhile a spate of new cases among humans were confirmed in Canada, raising the total number from 35 to 85.

The largest number of cases was in Nova Scotia. Many of them were at a school in the town of Windsor where an outbreak earlier in the week led to Canada's first cases of secondary transmission of the virus.

'No concerns'

Brian Evans, a senior official from Canada's food safety agency, told journalists up to 200 pigs had been infected at the Alberta farm.

Both the man and the pigs were recovering, he added, saying that the virus did not seem to have spread beyond the farm.

"I want to be clear - there is no food safety concern related to this finding," he said.

"The chance that these pigs could transfer virus to a person is remote."
 

Mike

Well-known member
Richard Doolittle said:
So how did it get from the man to the pigs??

This guy isn't originally from Georgia is he? :lol: :lol:

BWAAAAAAAA HAAAAAA HAAAAAAAAA HAAAAAAAA!!!!!!!!
:lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol:
 

MoGal

Well-known member
I pulled this from comments over at Mish's economic blogspot (and I can't post over there as I've not figured out how to get my id to work lol)

and this is someone else's comments not mine..... what does everyone else make of it??? Also according to earthclinic.com swine flu comments, Ted from Thailand says he treated a family who had eaten pork and got the swine flu. His treatment was 1200-1500 mg Lysine 2 hours apart 3 x day and BHT 1000-1500 mg 2 x day.......... he says the Lysine stops the fever....
----------------------------------------

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/Cities/Mumbai/Jalgaon-pigs-died-of-swine-fever-not-flu-says-minister/articleshow/4493131.cms


Jalgaon pigs died of swine fever not flu, says minister
7 May 2009, 0346 hrs IST, Prafulla Marpakwar, TNN

MUMBAI: Dairy development and animal husbandry minister Raviseth Patil on Tuesday said that the death of pigs in a section of villages in Jalgaon
district was from swine fever, a result of high temperatures.

"There is no reason to worry. Don't confuse swine flu with swine fever. No case of swine flu has been reported anywhere, as such there should be no cause for panic. Very high temperatures in the region resulted in their death,'' Patil said.

Panic spread in north Maharashtra following the sudden death of a large number of pigs, prompting the authorities to take action. The Centre has also asked the state government to conduct a thorough investigation into the deaths. "We have sent officials of the animal husbandry department to Jalgaon to collect samples for investigation,'' a senior official said.

The samples were sent to the state's disease investigation section as well as Bareilly-based (UP) Indian veterinary research institute. "We have investigated each case. A preliminary probe has revealed that the pigs and goats died of swine fever, which is caused by high temperatures,'' the official said.

According to him, following reports of the death of a large number of pigs, people all over the state panicked as they assumed the casualties were the result of swine flu. "As quite a large number of countries had reported cases of swine flu, it was assumed that there was an outbreak of the disease even in parts of Maharashtra. Our investigations have confirmed that the deaths were from swine fever and the reports of swine flu were baseless,'' he said.

The official added that swine fever is a highly infectious disease of pigs characterised by acute\chronic illness. "Usually, the mortality rate is over 90% whereas in the case of swine influenza, the mortality rate ranges between five and 10%.''
-------------------------------------------------------
this was the comment someone made back to the above news article:

It was posted to www.flutrackers.com a few moments ago.

There may be feedback on it:
"http://www.flutrackers.com/forum/showthread.php?p=229538#post229538"

India has a history of misrepresenting the presence of H5N1. There's a bird that flies across the Himalayas and it has brought into India from China bird flu/H5N1.

Your government is just not honest or forthcoming about pandemic flu.

If you can access Relenza, there in India, do what it takes to get it (ethics aside). It's clear as day that as H1N1 in the normal human flu form is now resistant to Tamiflu, the new strain will become so as well (through recombination).

Do not treat an antiviral lightly. If you don't take it all each day and timely, you'll become a breeder for newly recombined flu, which means you might kill family and friends unwittingly.

The current strain is "mild" if you say that 10% of the cases that are "recognizable" end up in hospital. That's what WHO is saying is "mild".

Got the message?

As to pigs and flu or fever, pigs do get fevers and they die. The fact that pigs and goats are dying is very, very, very worrysome. If the virus is passing from pigs to goats (mammals), this is bad news.

The India govt is saying that heat alone caused them to have a fever and die. It is rejecting the idea that the infection crossed species. That response has a real probability of being rubbish. Watch closely to see if deaths continue in the region, especially close by, to see if there are more reported goat or pig deaths.

I'm forwarding this on to a few others who may have something to say about this.

Has it been exceptionally hot in the part of India in which the pigs died?

Thx for the heads up.

Folks, if the virus is passing from pigs to goats, and it causes what they call "fever", but what I am guessing is the typical cause of death from flu, hemorrhagic fever, then this is your wake up call... the consequence of this will threaten the food supply of meat, worldwide.

This requires very close attention.
 

MoGal

Well-known member
I posted over at cattletoday some of the things hydrogen peroxide can do, it kills the bird flu and it might behoove some to check into it and add it to the water of swine, birds/chickens and even cattle. At least its cheap and doesn't cost much for prevention. One must need to search out how much to add to the water though.

I don't think its wise to instill fear or panic, however, we must use common sense. The government won't tell people what's going on until after the fact and they are too busy pushing the pharmaceutical companies.
 

PORKER

Well-known member
Uncomfortable facts about the swine flu outbreak 2
Posted 2:14 PM on 8 May 2009
by Tom Philpott
CAFO, swine flu, Vilsack
You’re testing my patienceDon’t associate U.S. pork with the swine flu outbreak—you can’t catch it through pork. Plus, no pigs on U.S. CAFOs are infected with it.

That’s message the industry and the USDA are straining to get across, anyway. Except ... you can catch swine flu from pork, according to the World Health Organization. Here is the Reuters:

Meat from pigs infected with the new H1N1 virus shouldn’t be used for human consumption, the World Health Organisation cautioned on Wednesday, adding it was drawing up guidelines to protect workers handling pigs.
...
The WHO ... said it was possible for flu viruses to survive the freezing process and be present in thawed meat, as well as in blood.
“Meat from sick pigs or pigs found dead should not be processed or used for human consumption under any circumstances,” Jorgen Schlundt, director of WHO’s Department of Food Safety, Zoonoses and Foodborne Diseases.

Yikes. And that bit about how the U.S. hog herd is free of H1N1? Here is The Wall Street Journal:

While Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack says there is “no evidence” of the new swine flu in U.S. pigs, the federal government doesn’t aggressively search for it on farms.
Mr. Vilsack’s statement is designed to bolster the Obama administration’s argument that U.S. consumers and trading partners haven’t any reason to shy away from eating U.S. pork. But the observation isn’t based on any extensive sampling program of the sort that is used by the federal government to alert it to other animal disease, such as mad-cow disease and bird flu.
Indeed, only in recent months has the Agriculture Department begun organizing a federal pilot program for screening pigs for flu. And that move came at the prodding of officials at the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. CDC officials have been worried that pigs might serve as a “mixing vessel” for a flu virus capable of sweeping through the human population. The pilot program has yet to begin to collect samples. [Emphasis added.]
The article continues: “[V]eterinary experts say it’s impossible to know whether U.S. pigs are free of the new virus, which was detected over the weekend in a Canadian hog herd. Farmers aren’t required to report flu outbreaks in their pigs to authorities, and the collection of the 500 samples [assembled nationwide from livestock vets] wasn’t designed to detect a low level of a new virus in U.S. swine, of which there are about 65 million head.”
 

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