'Incredibly difficult decision': Cork's Fota Wildlife Park euthanises geese following bird flu outbreak

Fota Wildlife Park has made the “incredibly difficult decision” to euthanise some of it’s geese after eleven confirmed cases of bird flu, as the park confirmed it will remain closed for a number of weeks.

The H5N1 Avian Influenza outbreak originated from wild bird populations in the Cork Harbour area, a spokesperson for the park said, adding that eleven confirmed cases of avian influenza have been identified in the Greylag Goose population, which will see the park “remain closed for a number of weeks”.

Fota Wildlife Park, in consultation with the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine (DAFM) has begun implementing a comprehensive strategy of mitigation measures including isolating the bird species in its care from the wild population and the construction of new temporary aviaries to house birds through the winter months, in order to limit the risk of further infection from wild birds.

The spokesperson said: “In discussion with DAFM, Fota Wildlife Park has also made the extremely difficult decision to humanely euthanise some of its impacted Greylag Goose population.

“This difficult, last-resort measure is necessary to prevent wider transmission and protect the Park's rare and genetically important conservation collection.” 

Aileen Tennant, Director, Fota Wildlife Park, said: “This is an extremely difficult time for everyone at Fota Wildlife Park. This action is being taken based on expert veterinary advice and our unwavering commitment to safeguarding birds in our care, especially our endangered breeding species.

“Our extensive, pre-existing vaccination programme and robust biosecurity protocols have proven successful, with the vast majority of birds in the Park remaining healthy and showing no symptoms of illness.” 

“We are treating this situation with the utmost seriousness, and I want to thank our expert teams for their dedication in caring for all our animals while the Park is closed. We are working with DAFM on implementing our longer-term strategy, which includes the construction of new aviaries for our birds to limit further risk from wild populations.” 

She added: “I want to reassure the public that while our gates remain closed, our animal care team is continuing to deliver the highest standards of care for all of the animals at Fota Wildlife Park. We look forward to being able to welcome visitors back to the Park when the site is officially deemed safe to reopen.”