Overview

Avian influenza (commonly known as “bird flu”) is a type of influenza virus mainly found in wild birds, with cases of avian influenza in birds increasing during the spring and fall migration seasons.

Avian influenza can be classified two ways:

  • Low pathogenic avian influenza (LPAI)
  • Highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI)

“Pathogenic” refers to the ability of a virus to cause disease. Most avian influenza viruses are low pathogenic. These typically cause little or no signs of illness in infected poultry while highly pathogenic viruses can cause severe illness and death in infected poultry. 

In recent years the HPAI-H5N1 virus, which has been circulating in Ontario since 2022, has been detected in an increased number of wild and domestic animals worldwide. Based on circulation internationally, the H5N1 virus can cause disease in:

  • wild birds
  • commercial poultry
  • wild and domestic mammals, including some pets
  • dairy cattle (not detected in Canadian dairy cattle to date)
  • humans, in rare cases

At this time there is no evidence of sustained human-to-human transmission of avian influenza and the risk to the general public remains low.

Symptoms in people

Avian influenza is caused by a different virus that causes the seasonal flu, but some of the symptoms may be similar. Symptoms can range from very mild to severe, including:

  • fever
  • cough
  • sore throat
  • runny or stuffy nose
  • muscle or body aches
  • headaches
  • fatigue or tiredness
  • conjunctivitis (red eyes)
  • shortness of breath or difficulty breathing

Less common symptoms are:

  • diarrhea
  • nausea
  • vomiting
  • seizures

If you have symptoms and you have been exposed to an infected bird or mammal, you may be eligible for testing through Public Health Ontario.

It is important to tell your health-care provider or contact Health811 if you have any of these symptoms and if you have been around sick or dead birds or animals in the past 10 days which were suspected or confirmed to have the virus.

Protect yourself

While the risk of catching avian influenza is low, you should always avoid handling live or dead wild birds. If you see a sick or dead bird, report it to the Canadian Wildlife Health Cooperative by phone at 1-866-673-4781 or online.

If contact with dead wild birds is unavoidable, always:

  • wear gloves
  • use a doubled plastic bag for disposal
  • wash your hands after with soap and warm water

Get the seasonal flu vaccine

While seasonal flu vaccines do not provide protection against H5N1 viruses specifically, they may reduce the risk of being infected with two flu viruses at the same time, which can increase the risk of mutations causing future pandemics.

It is highly recommended that people with significant exposure to birds or mammals receive the seasonal flu vaccine, including:

  • those who work with poultry and livestock
  • slaughterhouse and processing plant workers
  • wildlife officers and researchers
  • veterinarians

The seasonal flu vaccine is available to all individuals 6 months of age and older who live, work, or go to school in Ontario.

The Ministry of Health, along with federal and provincial partners, will continue to monitor H5N1 activity globally and within Ontario and will continually rely on available evidence and expert recommendations to inform any future human immunization programming for H5N1.

Food safety for people and pets

When handling food, you should always follow proper safe food handling practices.

Learn more about the safe handling and processing of wild game in the context of avian influenza.

Consumption of undercooked meat or unpasteurized milk products from animals that may be infected is not recommended for people or pets.

International travel

As an important measure before you travel outside of Ontario or Canada, visit the Public Health Agency of Canada’s website to determine if there are any active advisories for the region to which you are travelling.

While traveling there are some important precautions you should take to help safeguard your health, including:

  • avoiding visits to poultry farms or bird markets
  • not eating undercooked eggs, meat, or unpasteurized milk products
  • practicing proper hand hygiene through hand washing or bringing along an alcohol-based hand sanitizer

If you have a fever and respiratory illness within 10 days after returning from a region affected by avian flu, contact your health care provider, or Health811, immediately.