Inspections of chickens suspected of having been infected with avian influenza in Changhua County returned H5N2-positive results from chicken tissue samples.
However, the overall death rate among the chickens remained normal, the Council of Agriculture’s (COA) Bureau of Animal and Plant Health Inspection and Quarantine said.
The bureau’s comments came in relation to a dead chicken suspected of having contracted avian influenza that was received by the council on Dec. 27.
The bureau instructed the Changhua County Animal Health Inspection and Protection Center to investigate the site the next day and its inspections were completed on Saturday.
Tissue samples were twice taken from the site for testing, on Dec. 30 and Wednesday last week, the bureau said, adding that the chickens presented with no obvious clinical symptoms of avian influenza, with their daily death rate lower than the average for henhouses of 0.05 percent to 0.075 percent.
Bureau of Animal and Plant Health Inspection and Quarantine Director Hsu Tien-lai (許天來) said that normally, the death rate in birds that contract avian influenza is as high as between 90 percent and 100 percent.
“However, at the site we inspected, the daily death rate was less than 10 on some days and more than 100 only infrequently, which is very different from avian influenza,” Hsu said.
After inspections at 115 sites in the vicinity of the location, no unusual trends in poultry deaths were found, the bureau said. H5N2-positive results came only from serological tests of the chickens’ tissue samples.
In addition, the bureau said that according to data provided by the Poultry Association and National Animal Industry Foundation, the number of egg producing hens has remained at about 25 million for the past three months, producing about 91,000 boxes of eggs a day, which is normal.
Avian influenza has often occurred in the months of January and February, the bureau said.
In response, it began to step up inspections at ports of entry, while also monitoring and conducting sample tests on migratory birds, chickens from local markets and supervising site disinfections.
Palauan President Surangel Whipps Jr arrived in Taiwan last night to kick off his first visit to the country since beginning his second term earlier this year. After arriving at Taoyuan International Airport at around 6:30 pm, Whipps and his delegation were welcomed by Minister of Foreign Affairs Lin Chia-lung (林佳龍). Speaking to gathered media, the Palauan leader said he was excited and honored to be back in Taiwan on his first state visit to Taiwan since he was sworn in this January. Among those traveling with Whipps is Minister of State Gustav N. Aitaro, Public Infrastructure
President William Lai (賴清德) yesterday thanked Palau for its continued support of Taiwan's international participation, as Taipei was once again excluded from the World Health Assembly (WHA) currently taking place in Switzerland. "Palau has never stopped voicing support for Taiwan" in the UN General Assembly, the WHO and other UN-affiliated agencies, Lai said during a bilateral meeting with visiting Palau President Surangel Whipps Jr. "We have been profoundly touched by these endorsements," Lai said, praising the Pacific island nation's firm support as "courageous." Lai's remarks came as Taiwan was excluded for the ninth consecutive year from the WHA, which is being held in
RESOLUTIONS DEBATE: Taiwan’s allies said that UN and WHA resolutions cited by China and other nations ‘do not determine Taiwan’s participation in WHO activities’ A proposal to invite Taiwan to this year’s World Health Assembly (WHA) was rejected on Monday, resulting in Taipei’s absence from the annual meeting for a ninth consecutive year, although partners spoke up for Taiwan’s participation at the first day of the meeting. The first agenda item after the opening was a “two-on-two debate” on a proposal to invite Taiwan to participate at the WHA as an observer. Similar to previous years, two countries made statements in favor of the proposal, while two others expressed their opposition. Philippine Secretary of Health Teodoro Herbosa, president of the 78th WHA, accepted the WHA General Committee’s
At least three people died and more than a dozen were injured yesterday afternoon when a vehicle struck a group of pedestrians in New Taipei City’s Sansia District (三峽). The incident happened at about 4pm when a car rammed into pedestrians at an intersection near Bei Da Elementary School. Witnesses said the sedan, being driven at a high speed, ran a red light, knocking scooters out of the way and hitting students crossing the road before careening into a median near the intersection of Guocheng and Guoguang streets. The incident resulted in three deaths and 13 injuries, including the driver, a 78-year-old man
RSS