The Utah Department of Agriculture and Food is blocking the importation of all poultry and other birds originating in or passing through areas of Nevada and Southern California. The ban, implemented Wednesday, seeks to prevent the spread of Exotic Newcastle Disease, which was recently diagnosed in backyard poultry in the Las Vegas area and has created a state of emergency in California. The restrictions also apply to shipments of eggs, game birds, hatching eggs and birds used for household pets, such as parrots, cockatiels and love birds.
"We're asking pet stores and consumers to not purchase these types of birds without checking [to make sure they have not been in the affected areas]," department spokesman Larry Lewis said. Violators of the ban could face fines up to $5,000.
No cases of the extremely contagious and deadly avian disease have been reported in Utah, Lewis said.
"This is more of a safety measure to protect our poultry industry -- meaning egg-laying chickens -- and our turkey industry," he said. The ban will not affect the state's egg supply because most of the eggs sold here are produced in Utah, Lewis said.
Booth Wallentine, chief executive of the Utah Farm Bureau Federation, said the ban also will not dramatically affect poultry owners' ability to get hens.
"There are other places we can get [chickens]," he said. The bureau completely supports the ban, he said, and will do everything it can to prevent the disease from affecting state fowl operations. "This disease is something to be feared," Wallentine said. A federal quarantine already exists in the California counties of Los Angeles, San Bernardino, Riverside, San Diego, Imperial, Orange, Ventura and Santa Barbara, as well as Clark County, Nev.
The disease typically does not affect humans. However, some people who have handled infected birds may catch conjunctivitis, or pink eye, Lewis said.
The department is asking poultry and bird owners to watch for and report symptoms of the disease, which include greenish watery diarrhea, respiratory symptoms, sudden declines in egg production, drooping wings, dragging legs, circling and paralysis. There is no cure for the disease. The UDAF also is asking the public to take these precautions to lessen the risk of introducing the disease:
- Do not accept, purchase or transport birds, eggs or equipment from nonapproved or unknown sources. A certificate of veterinary inspection and a prior entry permit is required for interstate movement of all poultry to
Utah.
- Do not visit poultry premises in the quarantine area.
- Implement biosecurity measures for your farm including visitor restrictions, disinfection procedures and screening of employees who may have contact with other types of poultry.
- Avoid events where co-mingling of birds will take place such as swap meets, exhibitions, fairs and cock fights. Do not bring birds home from such events.