The Kebbi State Government, on Wednesday, said additional specimens have been taken to Jos, Plateau State, for tests in its effort to curtail the spread of avian influenza (bird flu).

The Deputy Director of Veterinary Services, Kebbi State Ministry of Animal Health, Husbandry and Fisheries, Dr Aliyu Muhammad, said there were a series of complaints of high mortality of local chickens in many backyards in the state.

Dr Muhammad noted that although the government was on top of the situation, transmission of the disease was possibly taking place among the backyard poultries.

He lamented that the majority of the backyard farmers were not observing the biosecurity measures, hence the transmission of the killer disease from one farm to another.

He further said, "This is the major challenge we are facing, and unless the farmers desist from this habit, the disease will spread to other places. Even yesterday, somebody reported to the ministry that he found his local chickens dead without showing any sign of discomfort."