Forwarded from the Burlington Food Council listserv.

Free Webinar and Twitter Chat Offer Spring Advice on Backyard Poultry   

With spring on its way, new poultry lovers may be thinking about starting a backyard flock or veteran poultry owners might want to add baby chicks. The U.S. Department of Agriculture is hosting a free webinar and simultaneous Twitter chat with experts to help both groups acquire and grow a healthy flock.

Called “Spring into Action: Maintaining a Healthy (and Growing) Flock,” the webinar and chat is an hour-long, online presentation by three poultry experts. They will share information and answer questions about introducing new birds to your flock, buying and raising healthy poultry and how to keep them free from disease and predators.  The webinar will take place on Thursday, February 27 from 2 – 3 p.m. EST.  To guarantee a place at the webinar, go to the Biosecurity For Birds’ website for the link. (https://communique.adobeconnect.com/healthybirds/event/login.html)

To join the Twitter Chat use #Chickenchat2014.  To submit advance questions visit Healthy Harry’s Facebook page.

Hosting the webinar are: Andy Schneider, also known as “The Chicken Whisperer®,” a national radio personality who serves as the Biosecurity For Birds campaign spokesperson; Dr. Jo Anna Quinn, a veterinary medical officer and poultry health specialist with the USDA Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS); and Dr. Casey Barton Behravesh, a Commander in the United States Public Health Service at the Centers for Disease Control (CDC).   Twitter questions will be answered by an APHIS veterinarian expert in bird matters.

This is event is part of Bird Health Awareness Week (BHAW), an annual observance promoted by the USDA’s Biosecurity For Birds campaign that helps support healthy practices for raising backyard birds. This year BHAW is being held from February 23 through March 1.

Since spring ushers in chicks’ season, the time when baby chicks and other baby birds begin hatching from their shells, the 2014 Bird Health Awareness Week will focus on these new additions to the country’s backyard flocks.  Bird lovers across the U.S. are invited to celebrate the week in their own way and let the USDA know what you are doing.

For more information about Biosecurity For Birds and to send information about your Bird Health Awareness Week event, please visit the Biosecurity For Birds website, https://healthybirds.aphis.usda.gov .