Countryside Alliance Ireland - love the countryside

1. Bird Flu Regulations require all those persons keeping poultry (including pheasant, partridge and duck) to register on the Northern Ireland Poultry Register with the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development (DARD). Click here to visit the appropriate web page.

2. Therefore persons with breeding establishments or persons acquiring birds as day olds must register immediately.

3. DARD now advise us that persons intending to release pheasant, partridge or duck poults into release pens should also register, even though they may not receive their poults for several months. When filling in the registration form, in the space provided for additional information each shoot should advise DARD of the intended date of receipt of their birds. This is so that DARD can keep each shoot fully up-to-date with the bird flu situation and any resultant changes in regulations.

4. Countryside Alliance Ireland is urging all shoots to sign up to the Northern Ireland Poultry Register. Failure to do so means that shoots may not be compensated in the event of healthy birds being culled, and could lead to a heavy fine.

5. All species of birds including pheasant, partridge and ducks are covered by this legislation and there is no minimum number – i.e. if you keep any number of birds you must register.

6. Registration forms are available - Click here to visit the appropriate section of the DARD web site to download the registration form and for further information.

Don’t hesitate to get in touch with us for advice – We are here to help.