The protection of ostriches against avian influenza

In previous outbreaks of avian influenza (AI) the virus was found to be varyingly pathogenic to ostriches. Sometimes no clinical disease resulted from the infection while in other cases even adult ostriches died with severe clinical symptoms. There are to my knowledge no reports yet of ostriches having been involved in the current pandemic with AI strain H5N1. Recommendations by the Chairman of the Ratite Group of the WPSA, Dr F W Huchzermeyer, Onderstepoort, South Africa