The Cape May County 4-H Livestock Committee hosted a special seminar on Avian Influenza on February 18 at the Lockwood 4-H Youth Center on the 4-H fairgrounds. This important topic was presented by the United States Department of Agriculture’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service. The focus of the presentation was how Avian Influenza affects backyard chicken flocks. Experts from the USDA Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service shared vital information about the disease with Cape May County 4-H members and community poultry owners.

As of December 2014, a new strain of Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza (HPAI) was found in the United States. Avian influenza is carried by wild birds including ducks, geese and other migratory waterfowl. While this strain has not yet proven to be harmful to humans, the presence of HPAI in commercial or backyard flocks can cause mass bird loss.

In light of recent outbreaks of the deadly virus, 4-H members from the county’s livestock clubs came to learn how to protect their 4-H project birds from the disease.

4-H offers educational programs to all youth, grades K-13, on an age-appropriate basis, without regard to race, religion, color, national origin, gender, sexual orientation, or disability. For more information about the New Jersey 4-H Program, administered by Rutgers Cooperative Extension, visit the website at http://nj4h.rutgers.edu.

Contact: Linda Horner, Acting 4-H Agent, 609-465-5115 ext. 606, linda.horner@co.cape-may.nj.us