It is well known that waterfowl like geese and ducks carry HPAI viruses and infect poultry flocks because they contaminate water bodies and the land around them with their faeces or saliva.
By Charmain Lines
But it is also true that these birds seldom get into direct contact with poultry, especially those on large, well-secured commercial farms. Most often, transmission is the work of so-called bridge hosts.
These are animals like swallows, pigeons and rats that do come near the farm buildings. They bridge the gap between the wild waterfowl and poultry by picking up the virus when they use the same water bodies as the infected birds and then carry it right up to the chicken houses.
Because wild birds and other wildlife don’t follow biosecurity protocols, no matter how well thought out and implemented they are, farmers would be wise to invest in some form of bird repellent that discourages wild birds from landing, feeding or spending time in the general vicinity of poultry farms.
Breaking the wild-to-domestic transmission pathway is a critical part of trying to prevent an HPAI outbreak.
In the autumn of 2024 and again in 2025, the US Department of Agriculture Wildlife Services carried out trials in the state of Iowa that involved spraying a bird-repellent product on 1,8ha of grass that surrounded a poultry facility.
Results showed a dramatic drop in wild bird activity – from 3 000 birds from 26 species in the weeks before the application to 260 birds from 16 species in the weeks after.
Choosing a science-based product that has been proven to not harm wildlife or the environment is obviously crucial, which means farmers and producers have to do their homework. But the success of these trials does suggest that there are viable solutions to deal with the leading cause of HPAI transmission, namely, wild birds.
Also read:
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Feed right, sell smart: Expert chicken farming tips for small-scale producers
