A petting zoo on Vancouver Island says it was forced to cull its entire flock of about 50 chickens and ducks when they contracted the highly contagious bird flu.

In a social media post, Campbell River’s Holly Hill Farm said it was “devastated,” noting that each bird had a name, but it was forced to kill the flock “to prevent the spread and help protect sources.” of food.”

It says Island Health has assured them the risk to their guests is “extremely low,” although recent visitors should monitor themselves for flu-like symptoms for 10 days after their visit to the farm.

An Island Health spokesperson confirmed it had been informed of the outbreak, saying its communicable disease public health team was monitoring the situation.

Dominic Abassi says health authorities directly tracked people and groups who visited the petting farm and advised anyone coming into contact with the animals to monitor for symptoms – although he also noted that the risk of transmission to humans is very low.

The farm says the rest of its animals are safe, but it will continue to monitor them to ensure they remain healthy.

The Canadian Food Inspection Agency said it believed migratory birds were to blame for outbreaks in small commercial poultry flocks.

The agency reports that there are currently 15 infected farms in the province, and the latest update on October 25 indicates that more than six million birds have been culled in the province due to repeated outbreaks of avian flu from spring 2022.

Holly Hill Farm says in its social media post that it immediately contacted Island Health and the CFIA, triggering the direction to put the animals down.

“Our flock was humanely killed and, according to the Canadian Food Inspection Agency, it will only take about 14 days after cleaning to have chickens and ducks again,” he says. specifying that the farm may not replace its herd.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published November 6, 2024.