By Scott Sullivan
Editor
Loss
We’re not out of the woods on bird flu. Nor sky either. The Michigan Department of Agriculture and Rural Development warns although deaths are down, we cannot relax our vigilance.
MDARD Director Tim Boring says Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza (HPAI) remains a threat as birds complete fall migrations. So:
- Prevent contact between domestic animals and wild birds, i.e. don’t let your dogs or cats eat them.
- Limit non-essential visitors to your farm. With all our pets, our house may as well be one.
- Wash your hands before and after caring for animals.
- Don’t share equipment or other supplies between homes/farms.
- Clean and disinfect clothing, footwear and equipment worn/used around sick animals …
Dr. Boring becomes more so as his lifesaving list goes on. So after I take my cat Poe to the vet’s this p.m., a complete self-fumigation will be in order. Or at least take a shower. My wife has been hinting I do so for 30 years.
“What’s wrong with Poe?” she asked.
“Hurt his left rear leg,” I said.
“How?”
“Beats me. Maybe tried to attack a bird.”
“Eagles can be nasty,” she speculated. “Vultures too …”
“Don’t forget your parrot.”
“Leave my parents out of this.”
“Parrot!”
“Sorry, couldn’t hear. My parrot was squawking.”
“Dr. Boring says watch out for bird flu.”
“One flew by now.”
“I thought you’d clipped your damn parrot’s wings. Ow, he bit me! Poe, attack him!”
My cat meowed.
“Sorry, you hurt your leg. I forgot,” I said.
“Dr. Boring,” my wife read the press release, “says bird flu is zoonotic.”
“Neurotic?” I asked. “If your bird would shut up, we could hear.”
“Your cat’s the one who’s meowing. On May 1,” she continued, “Dr. Boring issued a Declaration of Extraordinary Emergency HPAI Risk Reduction and Response Order (HRRRO) requiring dairy and poultry farms …”
“Poetry farms?”
“Let me finish … to adopt enhanced biosecurity measures.”
“So the MDARD head issues an HRRRO to curb HPAI spread?” I asked.
“Sounds like it. I hear there was one case in an Allegan County cow herd.”
“You heard a herd had it?”
“I’ve had it too,” she said.
“Bird flu?”
“No, with this conversation.”
“But the state states it’s an emergency,” I said. “MDARD Veterinarian Nora Wineland, DVM, MS and DACVPM, says if we don’t heed the HRRO to curb HPAI spread, we may be in peril.”
“I hope we are in apparel,” she said. “Enough public nudity.”
“Depends who it is,” I said, gazing at a mildewed Farrah Fawcett poster. “We must stop illegal migrating birds at the border. A wall won’t do it. We need a net reaching up to heaven.”
“How will that stop burrowing owls?” she asked. “Or birds that ride in on burros? Lots of burros in Mexico. Burritos too.”
“Meow,” said Poe.
“I know you leg hurts,” I said. “Be patient. You’ll be a patient in a bit. Ow! Your parrot bit me!” I told my wife. “Make him stop!”
“Tell him yourself,” she said. “He can speak.”
“But he doesn’t listen. He doesn’t even understand what he says.”
“Does anyone?” she asked.
Treatment
I looked at the alphabet soup that followed my vet’s name on her diploma. She had at least 98.6 degrees.
“Poe’s leg is shattered,” said the doc, showing me an X-ray.
“What can we do?” I asked.
“There are no ‘good’ choices,” she said. “The best we can do is amputate.”
Cost me an arm and a leg, I thought. Not a win-win. But at least I’d still have a three-legged cat.
“OK,” I said.
Recovery
Poe came home post surgery none too happy. Nor for that matter conscious; he was still sedated.
“Can I have those meds?” I asked my wife.
“They’re for him,” she said.
