Current through Register Vol. 47, No. 6, September 18, 2024
(1) The flock
owner, the owner's veterinarian, if requested, and the epidemiologist shafl
develop a plan for eradicating LPAI in each affected flock. The plan must be
designed to reduce and then eliminate LPAI from the flock, to prevent spread of
the disease to other flocks, and to prevent reintroduction of LPAI after the
flock beCornes disease-free. The flock plan must be developed and signed within
15 days after the determination that the flock is affected.
(2) The flock plan will include, but is not
limited to, the following areas:
a. Movement
of vehicles, equipment, and people on and off the premises.
b. Cleaning and disinfection of vehicles
entering and leaving the premises.
c. Proper elimination of daily mortality
through Cornposting on premises, incineration on premises, or other approved
method.
d. Biosecurity procedures
for people entering or leaving the facility.
e. Controlled marketing.
(1) No poultry may be removed from the
premises for a minimum of 21 days after the last detection of active avian
influenza virus on the premises. Immune flocks that have recovered from avian
influenza infection may remain on the premises for the remainder of their
scheduled life span.
(2) After 21
days, poultry marketing will only be allowed for delivery to slaughter
establishments at the close of business for the week.
(3) Routes used to transport poultry to
slaughter must avoid other poultry operations.
(4) Trucks used to transport poultry from an
infected premises must be cleaned and disinfected and may not enter another
poultry facility for at least 24 hours.
(5) Eggs which are washed, sanitized, and
packed in new materials may be moved into normal marketing channels, but trucks
hauling these eggs must not visit another premises between the production site
and the market. Egg handling materials must be destroyed at the plant or
cleaned, sanitized, and returned to the premises of origin without contacting
materials going to other premises. Disposable egg flats or sanitized, plastic
flats must be used to transport eggs.
(6) Eggs that are sold as "nest run" and are
not washed and sanitized must be moved directly to only an "off-line" breaking
operation for pasteurization and used for breaking only. The egg handling
materials must be handled as described in (5) above.
(7) Liquid eggs from layer flocks may
continue to move from breaking operations directly to pasteurization plants
provided that the transport vehicles are cleaned and disinfected before
entering and leaving the premises.
f. Vaccination. Avian influenza vaccine will
be considered for use only if allowed by the state veterinarian and USDA APHIS.
(1) Killed H5 or H7 vaccine may be used to
immunize all noninfected poultry remaining on the premises. Laying-flock
replacement poultry should be vaccinated at least two weeks before entering the
laying operation.
(2) Twenty
sentinel (nonvaccinated) poultry will be kept in each vaccinated flock, and all
20 will be tested for avian influenza every 30 days.
(3) Avian influenza virus will be considered
to be no longer active when all sentinel poultry are serologically negative on
two consecutive tests conducted at least 14 days apart and when cloacal swabs
from each of the 20 sentinel poultry are negative by virus isolation
testing.
(4) Positive sentinel
poultry must be euthanized and replaced by negative poultry after 14
days.
(5) Slaughter withdrawal
times must be followed in the marketing of poultry.
g. Housing facilities and manure. Before a
new flock is placed in an infected house, manure must be removed and the
housing facilities must be cleaned and disinfected. Manure shall not be removed
from the premises for a minimum of 30 days after the last active detection of
avian influenza virus in a house. Manure from infected housing facilities must
be carried in covered conveyances, and transportation routes must avoid other
poultry operations. Manure handling and disposal will be at the direction of
the state veterinarian.
h. Wild
bird, insect, and rodent control. Wild bird, insect, and rodent control
programs must be implemented on the premises before a facility is repopulated
with poultry. Rodenticide must be set out before feed or birds are removed from
the premises.
(3) The
plan must address flock management and be in Cornpliance with all provisions of
these rules. The plan must be formalized as a memorandum of agreement between
the owner and program officials, must be approved by the state veterinarian,
and must include plans to obtain a disease-free status.