West Nile Virus

[KimberlyAnn]

Before I freak out...Well, please help me not freak out.

About 9 years ago, West Nile Virus was everywhere in Sacramento. They sprayed the city a few times to stop it, but I remember not a day went by where I didn't see a new dead bird or two on the ground. Sometimes many more. It was very sad.

Well, it's happening again. I've noticed dead birds on the ground, but only a few. Tonight it's been confirmed, we have an outbreak again. But this time I have a bird.

So what steps can I take to protect Emmi? Anything besides putting up screens and keeping her inside? What about when they spray? It's dangerous for humans. Should I put towels or tape around leaky doors and windows when they spray? If I can remember right, spraying it with water rinsed it away and also having the infected objects lay out in the sun broke it down.

Any advice?

[KimberlyAnn]

When I say put up screens...I do have screened windows and doors, but maybe extra screen outside our sliding glass door.

[Pajarita]

I think that as long as you don't take her out and have screens so the mosquitos cannot come in, it should be OK. I don't like to kill anything alive (plants included) but mosquitos are one of the few animals I would kill...

[KimberlyAnn]

I hope you are right. I worry about when we move, the door will be open and we will have to move when it's not so hot. It should be hitting around 100 by then. I will just lock her up in a back room and start moving stuff at night. At least she will be sleeping and covered anyway.

[marie83]

I've never heard of this so presumably it isn't a threat in the UK or at least uncommon. I'm going to look into it anyway regardless just for my own knowledge lol

[KimberlyAnn]

It came over from Africa. It's a death sentence for birds and it's from mosquito bites. People can get it too and it causes fever and swelling of the brain among other things. It's not such a human threat over here yet, although I think we had ten deaths in California one year if I can remember right. But many wild birds died...and horses too, but I think they made a vaccine for them now. We have to report any dead birds we see to a hotline so they can test them. Then they spray the city. I was not too worried until I now because of Emmi lol I guess it's still one county over from me, but we have yet to hit our high mosquito season. We are directly connected to this county by marshlands so it always comes over. We are already seeing bird deaths so we are a few days away from the first tested case.