ILOILO City – As a precautionary measure because of the bird flu outbreak in Luzon, sites in the region where a lot of migratory birds gather have been identified.
These areas are in the municipalities of Sara, Dumangas, Ajuy, and Concepcion in Iloilo province; Sipalay City in Negros Occidental; Sibalom in Antique; and Barangay Bugnay in Jordan, Guimaras.
“We are not allowed to touch the migratory birds but we take blood samples of chicken and ducks in the surrounding areas. Every six months we collect over 930 samples that we send either to Manila or Cebu for laboratory tests. So far, none of them tested positive,” said Dr. Jonic Natividad, focal person for animal disease of the Department of Agriculture (DA) Region 6.
The outbreak of the avian flu in Luzon was discovered thru a series of blood tests taken from ducks in a farm that sought accreditation with the DA.
Ducks are being left to fend on their own and usually converge with migratory birds at the Candaba swamp in Pampanga, the biggest water body within an island, he said.
“It has come to our attention that it (bird flu virus) has gradually spread and there have been index cases in several areas in Luzon,” said Natividad.
Two weeks ago, he said that DA Regional Executive Director, Engr. Remelyn Recoter, convened the provincial veterinarians and some stakeholders with the presence of officials from the Bureau of Animal Industry (BAI) to discuss the movement, restrictions and protocols in light of the outbreak. (PNA/PN)
