Don’t bring sick geese to Oaken Acres center, warn officials as avian flu spreads

SYCAMORE – Public health officials and wildlife rescuers are warning residents to be wary of birds who may seem ill amid suspected cases of highly pathogenic avian influenza in migratory waterfowl.

DeKalb County-based Oaken Acres Wildlife Center announced Wednesday that it no longer will accept geese that appear to exhibit symptoms in order to protect their staff and other birds in-house.

Oaken Acres Executive Director Kathy Stelford said her staff has kept geese outside of the center’s main building, which houses an array of animals and birds that are susceptible to the virus. The center often takes in injured or sick wild animals to care for and then rehabilitate them.

“The rate of infection is just too risky for us to subject our animals, our birds to having these birds here,” Stelford said. “It feels bad because we’re a rehab center.”

This month, area residents have called the center to report at least a dozen unresponsive geese, Stelford said. The center initially instructed people to bring the geese in to Oaken Acres, thinking the birds were hit by a car or attacked by another animal. But Stelford said she now believes the geese have avian flu.

“Some of them [geese], even by the time people had [driven] them here, had died,” Stelford said. “So it’s a very fast-acting virus that can be contracted from one goose to another within 24-hour exposure.”

The geese have not be confirmed to have avian flu, but Stelford said officials from the Illinois Department of Natural Resources on Tuesday took a dead goose for testing.

The test results were not yet known as of Wednesday. Stelford said she’s confident in her assessment based on her observations, however.

“Usually within a day or two after they show symptoms, they die,” Stelford said. “So the ones that are getting here are either almost dead, dying or probably just beginning to show symptoms, and they are going to die very quickly.”

What is avian flu?

Avian flu, also called H5N1 bird flu or highly pathogenic avian influenza, is transmittable to humans. Since Feb. 25, officials said 61 cases in eight states have been reported to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, according to the center’s data.

Infected animals shed the virus through saliva, mucus, feces and other bodily fluids, such as cow’s milk. Human infections occur when the virus is suspended in the air through droplets or possibly dust and is inhaled by a person, according to the CDC. A person also can become infected by touching their mouth, eyes or nose after touching a surface contaminated with the virus.

“Please leave them alone, even if it goes against your better angel to try and help them. We’re just asking people to leave the geese alone that have these symptoms.”

—  Kathy Stelford, Oaken Acres Wildlife Center executive director

What to watch for

The IDNR urged the public this month to be alert for any sightings of mass deaths of geese or other waterfowl.

Department officials believe several dozen water birds, primarily snow geese, recently died after being infected with highly pathogenic avian influenza at Baldwin Lake State Fish and Wildlife Area in Randolph County, according to the news release.

Stelford said another mortality event could be occurring in Sycamore, which she said is where the majority of the sickly geese taken to Oaken Acres were from.

“The concentrations we’ve been getting are mostly in Sycamore, kind of like the southern end of Sycamore over by Bethany [Road] and Somonauk Street,” Stelford said.

The CDC also announced Wednesday the first confirmed severe case in the U.S. of bird flu.

Common symptoms of the virus in humans include fever, cough, sore throat, runny or stuffy nose, muscle or body aches, headaches, fatigue, eye redness and shortness of breath. Diarrhea, nausea and vomiting are less common symptoms, according to the CDC.

The public is urged to stay alert and use caution, although the CDC hasn’t called for restricted travel. The CDC advised against visiting poultry farms, bird markets or dairy farm with sick cows. Of the 61 human cases reported so far in the U.S., 37 are linked to cattle exposure, according to the CDC.

What if I find a bird that looks sick?

The IDNR also offered tips on what to do if you encounter what appear to be ill birds.

Those who happen upon groups of five or more dead birds in one location are encouraged to report it to their local IDNR wildlife biologist. For DeKalb, Ogle, Lee, Bureau and Putnam counties, that’s Jared Trickey.

Anyone handling the dead birds should wear gloves and a mask, and double bag any dead birds in sealed plastic bags. Officials wrote that those bags should be buried away from scavengers or disposed of by notifying a local waste service provider.

Anyone who disposes or touches the birds should wash their hands, clothes and any tools used with soap and water after the job is done, according to the IDNR.

Regarding the geese that appear sick but are still alive, Stelford said it’s better if people leave them be.

“There is nothing that we know of that can be done to stop the virus or cure the animal,” Stelford said. “Please leave them alone, even if it goes against your better angel to try and help them. We’re just asking people to leave the geese alone that have these symptoms.”