Every year in Australia bush fires destroy homes and cause the death of pets and livestock. Being prepared is key in limiting the harm that can come to your household in the event of a serious fire event.

Identification
For any pets that have outdoor access, having current identification and contact details can be the difference in whether they are re-united after a fire goes through. Cats and dogs should have their microchips registered through the NSW Pet Registry and details can be updated online. Any other species with microchips or other RFID you will need to check with the organisation responsibility for maintaining their records. If you have animals that do not have permanently implanted identification such as poultry, consider other means if identification whether it’s leg rings, photos for identification, etc.

Just like you would for kids going to daycare, if you are planning on boarding or taking pets with you to evacuation centres, etc then it’s worth labelling all their belongings too so things don’t get mixed up with others.

Pet Go-Box
As above – if you are planning to evacuate or move animals in the event of a fire, it’s worth preparing or at least having a check-list for your pets Go-Boxes. This should include enough food for at least 3 days (more if they have specific dietary requirements), water and bowls, as well as any medications/scripts. You’ll need leads & harnesses for dogs, and enough cat carriers for all the feline members of the household to have their own space. For the littler critters consider travel cages/carriers. In preparation it’s worth getting them out of storage with enough time in advance to give them a good clean. If they are potentially going to be stuck in carriers for a few days, you don’t want to start off with it already dirty. You’ll need to manage toilet breaks too, so pack the poo-bags, puppy pads, litter and trays. Anxious pets also benefit from having comfort items packed, plus beds that smell of home.  To streamline the process, if you intend to use boarding services, pop your vaccination certificates or books out handy too.

Transport vs shelter in place
As much as we love our pets and want to be able to take them with us in an emergency, it is not always a practical option. Aquariums are a challenge to move at the best of time and terrarium pets with specialist set-ups may risk ill-health with a move to evacuation centres. Similarly larger flocks or chickens or herds of horses and livestock are not easily moved and may need to be moved large distances in order to find available safe spaces for this. This means families need to have clear guidelines for themselves as to whether they intend to evacuation those animals and allow plenty of time for relocation to a safe area or instead plan as best they can for those animals to remain. This may mean cutting fences/opening gates so they can run from the fires and try and find their own shelter

Around the home
Especially if your plan is for animals to shelter in place, home preparation is essential. Just like you would for your house, you need to remove loose dry leaves and branches away from the structures your pets use for shelter e.g. chicken cooks, aviaries or stables. Dampen down the structures before you evacuate and fill any spare (preferably metal) containers, troughs and buckets with water before leaving. As our native wildlife only have the option to shelter in place, leaving water out, also helps them, but placing a stick into the water reservoirs can help prevent drowning, if a smaller critter slips into the water.

First aid
We often get questions about the best items to have in a first aid kit but our honest response is that the best first aid is to NOT be anywhere near a fire in the first place. Beyond that, large volumes of clean cool water is the best first aid item you can pack. It can be helpful for cleaning smoke-irritated eyes, soothing parched dry throats, gently cleaning debris from wounds and burns and helping to manage dehydration. Human grade burn dressings would be appropriate for use, but application of large volumes of cool water are still the recommended first aid for burns on us humans too!
For more information on how to have your home bush-fire prepared, talk to your local RFS branch.

As of 8/9/26 there are no recorded incidences of H5 Bird Flu in pet birds or poultry in Australia. The situation is fluid and any backyard chooks showing signs (https://www.nsw.gov.au/regional-and-primary-industries/biosecurity/bird-flu)  should prompt a call to the disease hotline ( Emergency Animal Disease Hotline 1800 675 888 ).
 
But if your sneezing chicken doesn’t have Avian Influenza, what else could it be?
 
Five common underlying causes of respiratory symptoms such as wheezing, sneezing, weepy eyes and head swellings, in backyard chickens in NSW are:
 
1. Fowl cholera. Caused by Pasteurella bacteria.
2. ILTV/Infectious Laryngotracheitis Virus. Caused by a herpesvirus.
3. IB/Infectious bronchitis. Caused by a coronavirus. (not THAT coronavirus!)
4. Infectious coryza. Caused by Avibacterium.
5. Mycoplasma. A small, bacteria-like pathogen that weakens the host and makes them susceptible to other respiratory infections including psittacosis, aspergillosis, E.coli and Salmonella infections.

Where do these diseases come from?
Chickens, turkeys, and ducks who have had a fowl cholera infection in the past, and remain silent carriers, or who have been recently infected but have shown no symptoms, can be the biggest spreaders. Your older hens may look fine, but when you introduce new pullets, the young birds get sick.

Alternately, young birds with no symptoms can spread fowl cholera to the older members of your flock. The “all-in, all-out” system, where your flock consists of similar-aged chickens, and you don’t add any unless you lose all of your existing birds, can simplify your quarantine measures. We recommend you don’t mix chickens with turkeys or waterfowl for the same reasons.

Wild birds can also be a source of fowl cholera, contaminating the environment with mouth, nose, and eye secretions. Pasteurella can survive in the environment on shoes, clothes, and feed bags. ILT is not in wild birds but can be spread from other poultry in feathers and dust, on vehicles and equipment. IBV, in chickens only, spreads in droppings and in secretions from the mouth and nostrils by contact or in contaminated water or food. Older chickens are more susceptible to coryza, spread by direct or indirect contact, usually from carrier chickens.

How are they diagnosed?
Pasteurella, Mycoplasma and ILT can be diagnosed by sending laryngeal swabs to the NSW DPI for PCR testing. Unfortunately IBV is more often diagnosed on post-mortem by sending away tissue samples from birds that have died. PCR testing for coryza is from an infraorbital sinus sample, but the availability of this test varies. Bacterial culture of gram-negative Avibacteria from a lab sample may be possible, and this cause is one of the most likely to respond to antibiotics.

​But don’t forget that your substrate (whatever material is on the floor of your coop), allergens, vitamin A deficiency (not enough fruit and veg!), bushfire smoke, and heat stress can also cause respiratory signs. It’s not easy being a chook! But their quirky personalities are a delight to behold. May your chooks not dig up too many of your flowers this spring.