Around 4 lakh chickens die in Andhra in 45 days, samples sent to find cause

Amaravati: Nearly four lakh chickens perished in West Godavari district of Andhra Pradesh and vicinity over the past 45 days, prompting the Animal Husbandry Department to send samples for testing to ascertain the cause, said an official on Wednesday.

Animal Husbandry Department director Damodar Naidu said samples were sent to a high security lab in Bhopal and also Vijayawada for confirming the disease causing these deaths.

"There is mortality but not to the extent claimed by the farmers. Farmers are also neglecting biosecurity measures, which is the main reason for the spread of diseases," Naidu told PTI.

Some farmers dumped dead birds in the canals and on garbage dumps in the streets, leading to the spread of the infection, he said, adding that basic precaution was neglected, resulting in the deaths of the fowls.

According to the animal husbandry official, usually, this phenomenon is seasonal and manifests every year, however, due to higher numbers of migratory birds coupled with the negligence of poultry farmers, number of deaths has gone up.

"We are conducting a series of sensitisation meetings to apprise farmers about biosecurity importance. Vets are also visiting the farms to advise the farmers on health and hygiene. We are hoping that the incidence will come down by this weekend," said Naidu.

Among other causes, Animal Husbandry officials are suspecting the role of an avian influenza which has to be confirmed by the Bhopal laboratory.

Incidentally, there is a vaccine for low pathogenic strain of avian influenza but not for high pathogenic strains and any viral outbreak, especially in flock management, where hundreds of birds are reared together, individual attention cannot be extended.

Hence, Naidu said better poultry management practices and biosecurity are key.

Observing that mortality will be around 0.5 percent in poultry farms, he said the current crisis shot it up to 4 percent.

Up to two percent mortality is common during summer and winter months and an alert will be issued only when it doubles.

We have alerted the field vets to be cautious and guide the famers, said Naidu, adding that poultry death claims mostly came from West Godavari district.

In the wake of this crisis, poultry farmers are asking the government for compensation and rescheduling of loans, he added.

As per the Animal Husbandry Department's estimates, there are eight crore commercial chickens in the poultries and two crore domestic chickens with households in the southern state.