Read My Comments To Reporter Samuel Morgen From The Bakersfield Californian Regarding VND

I also emailed it to all of our City Council members.

"Hi Sam. I wanted to provide you with some factual information ahead of our talk tomorrow. I might be sending you a few emails. Please try to read them because it is important for your story to be accurate. I have the feeling that the people that approached you have painted a picture that residents' health will be greatly endangered if backyard hens are allowed in the R-1 zone. This is simply not true. It is my hope that you write an article that is accurate and factual.

This following quote is from the County of Los Angeles Veterinary Public Health official website and is directly linked to CDFA's website:

"Can humans catch VND? VND stands for Virulent Newcastle Disease In humans, VND can occasionally cause an infection of the eyelids (conjunctivitis) in people if an infected bird coughs on a person's face, or a person touches their eyes after touching bird with VND. For most people, the conjunctivitis will go away without treatment, however, a doctor should be consulted if the symptoms are severe or persistent. Human infection can be prevented by hand washing after handling birds, and by wearing eye protection when handling sick birds. VND is not spread to people through meat or eggs - it is not a food safety concern. How can I prevent VND in my birds? Keep your bird area clean.

Watch for illness in birds.
New birds. If you get a new bird, make sure you know where it came from - request documentation from the seller about where the bird originated. Keep the new bird away from your other birds for at least 30 days, to make sure it stays healthy.
Do not borrow equipment. If you must borrow equipment or buy used equipment, make sure it is scrubbed thoroughly clean with detergent and water, rinsed, disinfected (contact time with disinfectant at least 10 minutes), rinsed again, and then dried thoroughly before using it for your birds. Many disinfectants are toxic to birds - make sure you use disinfectant in a well-ventilated place, far from you birds.
Do not spread bird diseases on your hands or clothing. If you are around other people's birds, wash your hands, disinfect your shoes, and change your clothing before handling your birds."

As you see, Newcastle disease is not a serious threat to human residents. The site also states, "As of June 1, 2020 - State and federal regulatory agencies have declared an end to the VND quarantine in Southern California." No where on the site does it recommend the prohibiting of backyard hens, nor other birds. VND is an avian issue, not solely a chicken issue. Did you know that even wild birds can have VND. I'll joke with you, no one is calling for the removal of all wild birds from backyards due to the human threat of Newcastle disease, are they?

This next quote is straight from the CDFA's website. It comes from their informational brochure on Newcastle Disease (VND).

"Human Health: VND is not a food safety concern; properly cooked poultry products are safe to eat. In rare cases, humans that have exposure to infected birds may get eye inflammation or mild fever-like symptoms. These signs generally resolve without treatment, however, medical care should be sought if symptoms persist. Infection is easily prevented by using standard personal protective equipment."

I am going to point out three parts from this section that are addressing "Human Health", that in my opinion, should be pointed out in your article: "not a food safety concern", "In rare cases ... humans may get eye inflammation or mild fever-like symptoms. These signs generally resolve without treatment", and "Infection is easily prevented". I remind you, this is a direct quote from CDFA's own brochure on (VND) Newcastle disease.

Our own state agency that oversees food and agriculture is stating that VND is not a serious human threat and the appropriate cautionary steps are to wash your hands and pay attention to your pets' health conditions. Every pet owner should be following these basic guidelines. I'm curious, is this how the people that spoke with you presented Newcastle disease (as the CDFA describes it), or, was my assumption in my first paragraph accurate? Now that you are factually informed you might want to reflect on the reason you were approached to write this article in the first place. If you come to the conclusion that there really isn't a story here with the issue of VND (which you very likely will), I would propose you write an article on the benefits of backyard hen ownership that enhance the "quality of life" experiences for Bakersfield residents. Regardless, I am still looking forward to our Friday afternoon interview so we can highlight how minor a health concern VND is, and how we can possibly share the many positive benefits of backyard hen ownership that greatly outweigh the minor concerns..

Thank you again for reaching out to me and providing our backyard hen community an opportunity to share with you regarding topics you are considering to write about for the Bakersfield Californian.

Hope this helps you with your article."