An animal sanctuary in the Okanagan is navigating the difficult loss of several birds in a two-week span after the discovery of avian flu on the property.
Summerland’s Critteraid Animal Sanctuary first revealed the news through social media late last week, calling the discovery of H5N1 “one of the most heartbreaking experiences in our history.”
On Monday, Critteraid shared a second social media post thanking the community for its support and providing a previously-promised update on how the whole situation transpired on the farm.
It began with their rooster Delta exhibiting signs of illness and passing away on Sunday, Oct. 25.
Typical protocol for Critteraid when a bird passes away in this fashion is to send it to a lab for testing, which they were preparing to do with Delta.
The next day, they arrived at the farm to find three more birds had passed away and they were sent to the lab for testing as well.
Between Monday, Oct. 26, and Wednesday, Oct. 28, eight of the animal sanctuary’s chickens died suddenly and the other two were left extremely sick.
On Thursday, Oct. 29, Critteraid was informed by the Abbotsford lab that the chickens had the avian flu, while a Winnipeg lab confirmed it was the H5N1 strain.
As a result, the remaining two ill chickens were euthanized that day.
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The next steps for Critteraid were to immediately shut the farm down to everyone but essential personnel, contact Interior Health (IH) to ensure the team was properly looked after and navigate Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) protocol for containment and lockdown.
Unfortunately, due to their proximity on the property, a difficult decision had to be made regarding the fate of their five beloved ducks and that happened on Saturday, Nov. 8.
“We took the heartbreaking option to compassionately euthanize our five ducks ourselves,” the update explained, adding that they chose to do it themselves to “ensure it was done our way with love and dignity.”
They shared the ducks’ names and ages as well. Charles was 18 years old, Cossette was 12, Martin was nine, Bernie was seven and Thelma was five.
“We loved them dearly.”
Critteraid says the farm remains shut down to the public at this time and they continue to work closely with IH with regards to contact tracing.
They’re also working with an epidemiologist to ensure all of the other animals at the farm and cat sanctuary are protected.
In the social media update, the team also shared answers to several questions that have been sent their way by the public.
Notable answers included that the farm has received threats and that the CFIA is now “going after” their other animals.
They also emphatically said no to questions about the CFIA bringing dead ostriches to their farm, receiving ostriches from a farm in Enderby and having anything to do with a pair of online petitions attempting to stop the avian flu response at the farm.
The update adds that they’re trying to make all the right decisions, navigate the complexities of mandates and regulations, and protect the health of both the humans and animals involved.
They’ve promised to keep their supporters updated through social media and their website as the situation develops, which includes when the farm may be able to open to the public again.
