Fact Check: Video showing chicken emitting fire from its mouth is old and not linked to bird flu
Avian influenza, commonly known as ‘bird flu’, is a viral infection that spreads in birds, cows and other animals. Since;
chicken emitting fire
Avian influenza, commonly known as ‘bird flu’, is a viral infection that spreads in birds, cows and other animals. Since January 1, 2025, more than 7000 poultry birds have been culled along with many eggs in the several states of India. Till February 6, Maharashtra reported 7 epicenters of bird flu in different districts. Andhra Pradesh government issued a high alert amid a bird flu scare in the poultry sector. Four infected areas have been declared as biosecurity zones and restrictions have been imposed. Authorities in Andhra Pradesh confirmed the first case of bird flu in Narasimharao Pet, Kurnool city, where unexplained chicken deaths led to testing. Following the confirmation, the area was declared a red zone, and all chicken shops within one-kilometer radius were shut down to prevent the virus from spreading.
Telangana has taken preventive measures after Andhra Pradesh reported cases of Avian flu (bird flu) across five villages in the state. The Nehru Zoological Park in Hyderabad has stopped procuring chicken and eggs for its carnivorous animals as a precaution against potential avian influenza transmission. The avian influenza or bird flu scare has sent panic waves among chicken lovers. Many people are sharing posts about “not to eat” chicken as it is not safe. Amidst this scare, a video of a dead chicken that can be seen emitting fire from its mouth is in circulation on social media with the claim that it shows a chicken infected with bird flu. The text on the video goes as “New Virus bird flu”.
Here is the archive link to the claim.
Fact Check:
The claim is Misleading. The video does not show bird flu-infected chicken, which has been spreading in recent months.
When we extracted keyframes from the viral video, we found that this video shows a bizarre incident that occurred in Karnataka’s Hadige village.
According to a report published on livemint.com, a dozen chicken died and one of them emitted flames from its mouth when pressure was applied. A person is seen pressing the lifeless body of a chicken which begins to emit fire when its stomach is pressed. Several others also shared articles about this incident.
Let us now understand the symptoms of Bird flu which is causing tremors in several states in India. We can see swelling around the head and neck, there will be purple discoloration of the wattles, and legs. We can see watery and green diarrhea nasal discharge, lethargy, and sudden death without clinical signs.
Though we were not able to establish what is the cause of the emission of fire, the viral video does not show a chicken infected by bird flu, it is an old video not related to the recent outbreak of bird flu in India. The claim is Misleading.