thos
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Avian Flu Precautions in BelgiumAll poultry owners have until 10 March to register with the Commune (Town Hall) stating the number of birds they have.
All poultry must be enclosed - runs must be fenced and covered. The police will come round to check and confiscate birds in non-compliant structures.
The fence must be 20cm gauge, which seems rather large to me. The regulation only applies to poultry, but owners of other birds have been given warning that the regulations may be extended to them. I also find it strange that ducks and geese are not covered by the rules.
It will be interesting to see if the packaging on the 'Free Range' eggs in the supermarkets changes.
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Bugs
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I think it has been said that there is a certain leeway with the free range criteria, several weeks can pass inside before they lose their right to claim it?
I am surprised that ducks and geese are not included, that's just weird; and 20cm is enormous - you could certainly get a cat through that for a start 
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dougal
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The DEFRA guidance indicates a net with 25 mm...
20cm would barely slow down many chickens...
EDIT - And is "poultry" defined to mean only chickens/hens? I think the english meaning is wider... meaning all "farmyard fowls"... And by "other birds" I'd expect that they might be meaning Pigeons, Hawks, Parrots, Mynahs, etc
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Treacodactyl
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Keep us posted Thos, it's useful to hear what's happening next door.
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thos
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I mistook myself - the net must be a maximum of 10cm to keep out wild birds the size of ducks. The roof can be net, but waterproof is preferable.
These rules apply only to 'volailles'. However, it is forbidden to feed and water 'les volailles et autres oiseaux domestiques' save under the net or roof so that the food will no more serve as bait for wild birds who will enter less easily into the henhouse.
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dougal
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| thos wrote: | | ... the net must be a maximum of 10cm to keep out wild birds the size of ducks. |
That is probably reasonable **until** the disease appears in the locality. Thereafter, excluding contact with **all** wild birds becomes appropriate to protect the flock. {Sparrows, for example, can and do carry the virus in the far east.}
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