Farmers have had nearly two weeks to prepare for the new restrictions. Photograph: Deborah Vernon/Alamy Stock Photo
Millions of free-range hens and other birds must be kept indoors from Monday under a national government crackdown to try to curtail the spread of a virulent strain of avian flu sweeping across Great Britain.
Keepers have had 11 days to prepare for the strict new lockdown-style measures, including taking steps to safeguard animal welfare, consult their vet and where necessary erect additional housing or self-contained netted areas.
The Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs (Defra) announced earlier this month that the chief vets of England, Scotland and Wales had agreed the new legal requirement for all owners to bring their flocks indoors, to keep them separate from potentially infectious wild birds.