Lockdown: The Birds

On top of the continuing battle against Coronavirus, we are now fighting Avian Influenza (Bird Flu). Following several very serious cases found around the country, England was recently declared an Avian Influenza Prevention Zone. This means that all bird keepers, whether you have 500 birds or 5, are now legally obliged to take precautions to protect your birds against this very serious virus - including, where practicably possible, bringing birds inside or under cover so that wild birds and their droppings cannot enter their living spaces and risk introducing the disease.

We're working hard to put all of the necessary precautions in place to protect our birds here at the sanctuary, and as we know many of you also keep pet birds - small flocks of chickens, ducks, and other winged friends; we thought we'd share some information to help you at this time.

Biosecurity is absolutely crucial at this time. This means not only keeping your bird enclosures clean, but all furnishings within them paying particular attention to food and water bowls, all tools and equipment used, the areas surrounding enclosures, and yourself.

Cleaning with a good disinfectant is very important. Always read the container or product data sheets (you can usually find these on the manufacturer's website) to make sure your chosen product is effective against the Avian Influenza virus, and use the correct dilution. You can find a list of Defra approved disinfectants here.

Keep food and water containers covered and protected from wild birds.

As the virus is spread through droppings and secretions from infected birds (if you're a bird keeper, you'll know how often just a single bird can poo!), it is so easy to accidentally introduce the virus without taking these precautions. Could you be taking it in to your chicken coop on your feet whilst walking through your garden? Can wild birds or other wildlife access your feed and bedding storage areas? Stand back, look at your bird enclosures and care routines, then carry out a simple Bird Flu "Risk Assessment", aiming to eliminate as many of the risks that you come across as you possibly can.

For more in-depth, official guidelines, you can find the Government's Bird Flu resources here.

Depending on the types of birds you keep and numbers, it may not be practical to completely enclose your birds. Remember to bear their physical and mental welfare in mind, and monitor them each day for any changes - even the smallest changes in behaviour or appearance may be an indicator of something amiss. If you are worried at any point, seek advice from a professional such as your avian vet.

This virus won’t dominate the headlines like Covid, but it is extremely real, and very serious for the birds it can infect - a bird sanctuary not too far away in Worcestershire has sadly had all of their residents euthanised after some tested positive for the virus, and we cannot even begin to imagine being forced to do this. It simply cannot happen!

We regret that due to this, we won’t be able to take in any unwanted birds at this time. This is to, again, protect our birds at the sanctuary; birds you might be familiar with here such as Nigel the Goose, Malcolm the Emu, Benedict the Rooster, and so many more... Our animals rely on us to keep them safe, and we must put them first!

Wishing you and all of your feathered friends good health!

Brockswood Lesson: Emus

With the wonderful response we received to our first Brockswood lesson, we thought we'd put another together for you! This time we would love to talk to you about Emus, one of our most fascinating and unique animals, sometimes overlooked for not being quite so cute and cuddly.

Fun Facts:

• The word Emu comes from an Arabic word meaning ‘large bird’, and large they most certainly are! Emus are Australia's largest bird and the second largest bird in the world. They stand about 2 metres tall.

• Emus belong to a family of flightless birds called 'Ratites'. Most of this family are now sadly extinct; and only the Emu, Ostrich, Cassowary, Kiwi and Rhea are living today.

---

Suggested Homework:

Think: Can you name any other animals from Australia?

Research: If the Emu is the second-largest bird in the world, which bird is the largest? We’ll give you a clue; it is one of the other members of the Ratite family. Which bird is the smallest? Can you do a bit of maths and calculate the size difference between these two very different birds?

Research: What does the word 'Extinct' mean? It is very important that we care for animals and stop this from happening to them. This is called 'Conservation'.

---

• Emus have been living in Australia for a very long time. Their ancestors, the Dromornithids, roamed the land when Dinosaurs lived; and they are even thought by some scientists to be “Living Dinosaurs”, as they have many similar or even identical features to their Dinosaur relatives!

Some of these amazing features shared with their Dinosaur ancestors include:

• Most birds have what is called a keeled sternum (their breast bone), but Ratites don't have this, like their dinosaur ancestors. This means that they don’t have a strong anchor for their wing muscles that other birds have, and they could not fly even if they had large wings! They do have tiny wings hidden under their feathers, but cannot use them.

• Although they can't fly, they can most certainly run! They have long legs and powerful feet with three forward-facing toes. This allows them to run very fast - up to 30 miles per hour! These strong legs can also deliver some very powerful kicks; and one toe on each foot has a long talon, which can be lethal to predators. They are also good swimmers and love the bathe.

Can you see the resemblance to dinosaur feet here?

• Emu feathers are very different to most birds and these hang loosely, rather than being smooth and aerodynamic, giving them their shaggy appearance. This is how we think dinosaur feathers would have looked too!

---

Suggested Homework:

Research: Have a look at some different birds and their feet. They’re not all the same and can vary a lot between different species – why do you think this may be?

Research: All birds are thought to be descended from Therapod Dinosaurs (this group of dinosaurs even includes the mighty Tyrannosaurus Rex!). Can you find any other traits that make them similar to our bird friends? A very big hint below...

An Emu egg!

---

• Emus are omnivorous and need very nutritious food to maintain their huge body weight – they can weigh up to 54kg. They mainly eat vegetation, including a wide variety of leaves, grasses, seeds and native flowers; as well as water plants, such as duckweed and algae. They also enjoy a variety of fruit and vegetables here at Brockswood.

Suggested Homework: You are now in charge of preparing Malcolm the Emu's dinner at the sanctuary. What will you put in his bowl for him?

---

We've only just scratched the surface about the amazing Emu and hope that you can see them a little differently now! If you would like to learn more, why not dig a little deeper and see what facts you can find? or ask us some questions, we love talking about our animals!

Now we'd love to see you get arty and have some fun! Why not draw, paint, or make your own Emu at home. Get creative! and don't forget to take some photos and send them to us, we, and Malcolm our Emu, would love to see them.

Government Support Needed for Animal Sanctuaries!

Animal Sanctuaries like ourselves, Rescues, and Zoos across the UK are currently at ever-increasing risk of closing. This is due to the loss of fundraising opportunities, inability to furlough staff (animals continue to need our round-the-clock care), and lack of emergency funding available to us at this time. Many of these organisations may close if the Government does not step in; resulting in countless animals becoming homeless, having no rescue to take them in, or worse still being euthanised - a zoo director in northern Germany has even admitted that some animals might soon have to be fed to others, if the zoo is to survive (we absolutely will not let this happen at Brockswood). Please help by joining the plight to urge the Government to step in and help during this desperate time!

Please send an email or letter to your local MP to urge our Government to step in to help organisations like Brockswood Animal Sanctuary survive COVID-19. You can write your own email/letter in your own words or feel free to use the letter that we sent to our local MP, Marco Longhi, as a template. Mr. Longhi has kindly responded to us, and we would love to see more of his colleagues join our fight.

You can find your local MP and contact them directly by searching for them here: https://www.theyworkforyou.com/mps/

Please SHARE with as many people as you possibly can to get our message out there to the people that can make a difference, and ensure that animals are considered at this difficult time!

---

Our letter to Marco Longhi, MP:

---

Copy & Pastable Version for you to edit as required:

RE: Additional Support Required for UK Animal Sanctuaries & Rescue Centres.

As our local constituency Member of Parliament, Brockswood Animal Sanctuary would like to raise our concerns with you regarding the impact of COVID-19 on the UK animal care sector.

We are encouraged by the various help packages the Government has put in place to help businesses and organisations through this very difficult period. However, it appears that the unique challenges that face animal sanctuaries and rescue centres have been overlooked. In common with more mainstream business and organisations, income during COVID-19 lock-down has ceased due to fundraising events being cancelled and their charity shops closing etc.

The packages outlined by the Government so far are in the main directed towards mainstream businesses that can go into a period of dormancy more easily than animal care facilities can for the following reasons:

• Smaller animal facilities have a higher proportion of staff that work directly with the animals, unlike some larger facilities like zoos that have a higher proportion of ancillary staff that can be furloughed to help with overall running costs.

• Businesses that are closed do not have ongoing costs of stock replenishment. Animal facilities do; we still have to feed the animals on a daily basis and change bedding etc.

• Businesses that are closed are not using utilities such as electric, gas and water. This does not change for animal facilities as the day to day work is continuing as normal. Those facilities that deal with exotic animals such as reptiles use high levels of electricity to keep vital heat lamps functioning which are required to keep these animals alive.

You can see from the above that although income has ceased outgoings for these facilities remain at the same level, which is just not viable or sustainable. Therefore we would ask that:

• The current Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme be extended to include the salaries of essential animal care staff or alternatively allow furloughed essential staff to volunteer some time back into the organisation.

• The banks reviewing an application for a Coronavirus Business Interruption Loan are flexible with regard to the mechanisms by which smaller animal facilities create an income as not many will fit into the parameters set by most banks when considering the viability of a loan.

• Support is put in place for animal sanctuaries and rescue centres that will not receive the Coronavirus Small Business Grant because the properties they occupy do not meet the Small Business Rates Relief or Rural Rates Relief requirements; or they operate from a part of a larger property and the grant goes to the landlord or owner of that property.

We fully understand that the Government are not going to be able to save every single business and organisation and as the Chancellor pointed out, some will unfortunately fall by the wayside. However, it would seem that the animal care sector has fallen between the gaps in the Governments support packages. This could potentially result in a disproportionate amount of animal sanctuaries and rescue centres facing possible closure, compared with other sectors where business can more easily go into ‘hibernation’ during this crisis.

We are looking for your support to help us make representations to the Government to ensure that the animal care sector will be considered as the COVID-19 policy continues to be revised and developed. Yours sincerely,

Neil Swann Director – Brockswood Animal Sanctuary