Wildlife rescue and rehabilitation centres in British Columbia say they are “overrun” with calls from the public who are seeing birds such as wild crows, ducks, and geese in distress, e.g. moving with lack of coordination, having seizures, or paralysis, all symptoms associated with avian influenza. The Canadian Food Inspection Agency, the lead government ministry responsible for dealing with the disease nationally, advises people not to handle sick birds. Seven commercial poultry farms in Abbotsford and Chilliwack have been quarantined with avian flu since November 16th. This is the same area where seventeen million birds were culled in 2004.
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