USA TODAY – Sick dairy cattle in two central U.S. states have tested positive for bird flu, federal officials reported.
As of Monday, the highly contagious pathogenic avian influenza virus (HPAI) had been found in unpasteurized clinical samples of milk from ill cows at two dairy farms in Kansas and one in Texas, plus a swab from a dairy cow in Texas, the U.S. Department of Agriculture announced in a news release.
The agency said its officials, along with the Food and Drug Administration, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and state veterinary and public health authorities, were investigating an illness detected primarily in older dairy cows in those states, as well as in New Mexico.
Wild migratory birds are believed to be the source of the infection, the USDA wrote, and viral testing and epidemiologic efforts are continuing this week.
Additional testing took place Friday and over the weekend, the USDA reported, because farms have also reported finding dead wild birds on their properties.
“The first detection of HPAI in dairy cattle in Texas and Kansas underscores the importance of adherence to biosecurity measures, vigilance in monitoring for disease, and immediately involving your veterinarian when something seems off.” – American Veterinary Medical Association
Based on findings from Texas, the agency wrote in the release, the detections appear to have been introduced by wild birds, and the commercial milk supply “remains safe due to both federal animal health requirements and pasteurization.”
Bird flu is rare for humans, but possible. Sick dairy cattle in two central U.S. states tested positive for bird flu in late March 2024.
Initial testing by the National Veterinary Services Laboratories has not found changes to the virus that would make it more transmissible to humans, the USDA said, which means the risk to the public contracting the virus remains low for now.
Federal and state agencies said they “are moving quickly” to conduct additional bird flu testing …
