Avian influenza shocks the Diepholz district – zones and compulsory stables!

Avian influenza shocks the Diepholz district – zones and compulsory stables!

A serious alarm in the Diepholz district: On Friday, October 17, 2025, an outbreak of the dreaded avian influenza was detected in a laying hen farm in Stuhr. This leads to far-reaching measures that will affect both farms and local residents. Authorities have already set up extensive restriction zones to curb the spread of the disease.

The municipalities of Stuhr and Weyhe as well as the towns of Bassum and Syke, where strict security precautions now apply, are particularly affected. A protection zone with a radius of 3 km and a surveillance zone of 10 km around the outbreak site have been established for the affected area. As the District newspaper reported, bans on the import and export of birds, fresh poultry meat, game birds and eggs have come into force in these zones. However, pork and beef as well as private purchases of poultry meat in supermarkets are exempt from this regulation.

Precautions and recommendations

In order to keep avian influenza under control, all poultry farmers within the protection and surveillance zone must house their animals in stables. However, there is no provision for a district-wide stable requirement. The responsible authorities recommend that all affected owners familiarize themselves in detail with the regulations of the general decree. These are published together with an interactive map on the Diepholz district homepage.

Avian influenza is not just a problem for the Diepholz district. There have already been several outbreaks throughout Germany this year, especially in the coastal regions of Lower Saxony and Schleswig-Holstein, such as Agrarheute reported. This shows that avian influenza poses a serious risk to livestock farming. Experts warn of particularly high risks for seabirds, which have claimed the lives of thousands of birds on the coast.

Important biosecurity measures

Transmission of the virus occurs primarily through direct contact with infected animals or contaminated materials. Therefore, it is important that poultry farmers follow strict biosecurity measures. These include, among other things, access restrictions to poultry flocks, wearing suitable protective clothing and hygienic hand cleaning before contact with the animals, as can be seen from a leaflet from LGL Bavaria reported.

Wild birds represent a significant reservoir for the pathogens, which is why contact between farmed poultry and wild birds should be avoided at all costs. It is advisable to keep feeding places inaccessible to wild birds and not to provide drinking troughs with contaminated surface water.

Additional precautionary measures such as cleaning vehicles after transport, pest control and comprehensive records of animal arrivals and departures are strongly recommended to prevent the spread and detect infections early.

The situation remains tense and it is hoped that the measures taken will quickly have an effect and that avian influenza can be contained.