VietNamNet Bridge - Thousands of salaganes died last week in Phan Rang City in the central province of Ninh Thuan. The information made hundreds of salagane-breeding households in HCM City anxious.

 

 

A salagane house in HCM City.

Health experts have warned of the risk of possible A/H5N1 transmission from Salagane to humans when thousands of birds were found dead in Ninh Thuan Province. The Veterinary Department said some blood samples taken from the dead birds proved positive for the virus.

As Salaganes cannot be isolated like poultry, the best way is to intensify inspection of the affected areas and take preventive measures, like wearing gloves and face masks. Experts said people can still use salagane products with clear origin and expiring date.

However, the information has made salagane breeders worried.

In Ho Chi Minh City, there are over 300 salagane houses, most concentrated in the districts of Can Gio, Nha Be, District 9, District 2, District 7, Thu Duc, District 12, Hoc Mon and Binh Chanh.

Income from bird nests is very high. Farmers only invest only once in build bird houses with luring devices. Salanganes fly into these houses to build nests by their slaver. After the baby birds grow up and fly away, homeowners will collect the nests. On average, farmers harvest one kilo of bird's nests from 120 bird’s nest, worth VND40 million ($2,000) per kilo.

HCM City’s salangane breeders now worry that the information of salanganes with bird flu would affect their income.

Tran Thuan, a salangane breeder, expressed his doubt of the information on salanganes with bird flu in Phan Rang. He said: "Many countries have bred slanganes for decades. But no country has reported of bird flu on salanganes. No scientific organization has said about salanganes with bird flu. Some Southeast Asian countries like Indonesia and Malaysia breed salangane. In Vietnam, salangane breeding is developing robustly in Ho Chi Minh City, Tien Giang, Ninh Thuan and Khanh Hoa. But only Phan Rang has detected bird flu on dead birds while living birds are still healthy.”

Mr. Huynh Tan Phat, Deputy Head of the HCM City Animal Health Department said, so far the department has collected nine samples of salanganes to test but all of them are negative to the H5N1 virus.

The animal health agencies in all salangane breeding provinces are implementing necessary measures to control salangane breeding activities in order to promptly detect flu and prevent it from spreading to human.

Doctor Nguyen Hong Ha, Vice Director of the National Hospital of Tropical Diseases, said A/H5N1 flu appeared in Vietnam eight year ago and is found on poultry every year. It is easily transmitted to humans.

A/H5N1 is a dangerous flu as 50 percent of infected patients have lost their lives. Recently, a four-year old child in Dong Thap died of the flu.

Currently, there is no vaccine and specific remedy for the disease. Therefore, if any persons have high fever and trouble in breathing they should go to hospital for check-up.

Tran Chanh Nghia