Bird flu: a simple biosecurity checklist for small poultry farms

29 October 2026 · 2 min read · Krishoker Thikana desk

In March 2025, Bangladesh reported its first highly pathogenic bird flu outbreak on a farm since 2018. On a farm in Jessore district, 1,900 of 3,978 birds died, and the rest of the flock was culled. For a small farmer, one outbreak can wipe out a year's income in a week.

There is no cure for bird flu in chickens. Protection means keeping the virus out. Most of these steps cost little or nothing.

The biosecurity checklist

• One gate, kept shut. Only people who work on the farm go inside the sheds.
• A foot dip with disinfectant at the shed door, changed every few days.
• Separate boots and clothes for the shed, never worn to the market or another farm.
• Wash hands before and after handling birds.
• Keep wild birds, ducks and crows away from feed and water; cover feed stores.
• Do not keep ducks and chickens together, and keep backyard birds away from the farm.
• Buy chicks only from registered hatcheries, and keep new birds apart for two weeks.
• Clean and disinfect the shed between batches, and dispose of litter away from the farm.

Warning signs

• Many birds dying suddenly, often within a day or two.
• A sharp drop in eggs, or soft-shelled eggs.
• Swollen head, blue or purple comb and wattles.
• Birds sitting still, not eating or drinking.

If birds start dying

• Report it to your Upazila Livestock Office at once. Early reporting protects your neighbours and your next batch.
• Do not sell, eat or give away sick or dead birds, and do not throw them in rivers or fields.
• Do not handle dead birds with bare hands. Bird flu rarely infects people, but it can.
• Stop all movement of birds, eggs, trays and people off the farm until an officer has visited.

The Poultry page of this site lists the Department of Livestock Services, the Bangladesh Livestock Research Institute and WOAH, which publishes international bird flu reports.