Three words that can put terror into any sane person's mind. West Nile Virus. What is it? How can we protect ourselves against it? Are our pets safe? The list goes on.

I will attempt to answer some questions here, as well as inform you how we have been affected by the virus at Messinger Woods.

West Nile Virus is a mosquito-borne virus that causes an inflammation of the brain (encephalitis) and in some cases, an inflammation of the lining of the brain and spinal cord (meningitis). It is spread to humans by the bite of an infected mosquito.Did you know that only adult female mosquitoes bite humans, birds and other animals to get sufficient blood to develop their eggs? Male mosquitoes feed on plant juices and nectar only. Research at the present time believes that although many species of mosquitoes exist, the adult Culex pipiens (common house mosquito) is the most commonly associated with West Nile Virus.

The experts believe that the virus is spread to humans by the bite of an infected mosquito. A mosquito becomes infected by biting a bird that carries the virus. Birds become infected by the bite of an infected mosquito. So who came first the chicken or the egg????

Most research shows that at the present time, West Nile Virus is NOT transmitted from person to person, nor it is transmitted from animal to person. Symptoms include fever, headache and body aches. Most people have little or no symptoms at all. The elderly, very young, or people with immune problems may develop more serious symptoms including encephalitis, muscle weakness and if left untreated,

may be fatal in some cases. If you were bitten by an infected mosquito, symptoms would most likely occur within 3 to 15 days, if at all.

As far as our domestic pets are concerned (dogs and cats), West Nile Virus has been found in both dogs and cats, but there have only been 3 isolated cases where the animals (all cats) died. (In 1999 and 2000 in New Jersey and upstate New York). There is no documented evidence to show the transmission of the disease between dogs and cats, or from dogs and cats to humans.

At the present time, the best protection against this disease appears to be the use of insect repellent containing DEET (N,N-diethyl-meta-toluamide) when you are outdoors. Wear long sleeved clothing, long pants, socks. Spray clothing. Read directions on the repellents to be sure you don't spray exposed skin if the repellent contains permethrin.

Peak mosquito biting times are dawn, dusk and early evening. Avoid extended exposure during those times, or be sure you have taken precautions.

Limit the places available for mosquitoes to lay their eggs. Do not allow standing water around your home. If you have bird-baths, change them daily. Do not allow pots with drain-dishes to have water standing in them, especially in shaded areas for long periods of time.

Now, on to the patients that Messinger Woods has treated with suspected West Nile Virus. We have treated Red-tailed Hawks, Great Horned Owls, Coopers Hawks, Crows and various other species that we suspected carried the virus. All of these birds came in showing severe neurological symptoms, as well as lethargy, lack of interest in eating, and in most cases, general weakness and inability to remain stable.

At the present time, most of the patients have died from the virus. We were able to release one Red-tailed Hawk which we believed had the virus. Marianne Hites responded to the call for a Red-tail that was standing on the ground, circling. When she attempted to retrieve the bird, it was able to fly up to the garage roof. Marianne knew the bird would be "down" the next day and alerted everyone on call. Sure enough, the next day the call came in and Marianne retrieved the bird and immediately started emergency care. We can only assume that the quicker we get these birds in once they show symptoms, our chances of getting them back into the wild increase.

Prior to the release of the Red-tailed Hawk, we had blood drawn and it was sent to Ward Stone for evaluation and determination of the level of antibodies developed by the bird. That will verify the presence of the virus and assist us and other rehabilitators in using treatments that work. Right now everything is a guessing game.

In addition, I was able to keep a Crow alive for one month. Up to this point, Crows have been hit the hardest, and have a survival rate of only a day or two once the symptoms show up. This Crow was sent in to Ward Stone for additional testing to see if he was starting to build his own antibodies, and if so, at what level they were at within a month's time.

I have discussed these matters with Ward Stone from the New York State Pathology Department. Mike OIek and Marianne Hites have also been in contact with him. Ward has tested 6000 dead birds this year (2002) alone. I have also discussed this virus and treatments known to date with the directors and veterinarians at The Raptor Trust in New Jersey and the Raptor Center at the University of Minnesota. There has been some luck with releasing birds other than Crows across the country. Most places tell us that the survival rate is not good, and birds are dying at alarming rates. Kay McKeever, the world-renowned Owl expert and Rehabilitator from Vineland, Canada lost half of her Owl population this year (2002) from this disease. The experts do not see it running it's course anytime soon, and believe next year will be as difficult, if not worse.

These tests won't help the animals that died, but they certainly will help us in treating the growing numbers of infected birds coming into our facility. These birds require an incredible amount of time and treatment. While they are in their most critical stages, we have to tube feed them, make sure that they have sufficient heat on them, and keep them as quiet and peaceful as possible. Stress of any type can kill these birds.

With the increasing number of volunteers stepping forward, willing to work with these birds, and Messinger Woods' network of working with other facilities across the country, maybe, just maybe, we will release more birds back into their homes. Each bird that has come in has their own personality coupled with a desire to survive. Every bird that survives, and is released back into the wild, is immune from developing the virus again.

As with all our wildlife patients, these poor creatures can not tell us what hurts. They have no way of telling us what happened or when it started. We are running our own little CSI labs of sorts, working backwards. We see the end result and have to rebuild what "MIGHT" have happened. With years of experience our guesses improve, as well as the animal's chance of survival.

With all of your continued support we will continue to grow and learn. The true benefactors of all of this are the frightened, furred and feathered patients that come through our doors. With a great deal of luck and the knowledge we gain daily, our patients will get to run and fly back out through the same doors they came in when they were sick and in need of help.