The US Department of Agriculture (USDA) has confirmed that the mystery illness that first struck older dairy cattle in the Texas panhandle is highly pathogenic avian influenza, commonly known as bird flu. The confirmation came after milk from sick animals tested positive for the virus. USDA, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), and veterinary and public health officials are now conducting an investigation and have encouraged farmers to monitor and report cattle illnesses quickly.
Symptoms of the illness include sudden decrease in lactation, thicker milk, a drop in feed consumption, and in some cases, pneumonia and mastitis. The symptoms last between 10 and 14 days, with animals recovering on their own, thus not requiring culling of herds similar to what takes place in the poultry sector when birds are affected by the virus. Farmers who observe clinical signs in their herd consistent with this outbreak should immediately contact their veterinarian. Veterinarians who observe these clinical signs and have ruled out other diagnoses on a client’s farm should contact the state veterinarian and plan to submit a complete set of samples to be tested at a diagnostic laboratory.
For dairies whose herds are exhibiting symptoms, on average about 10% of each affected herd appears to be impacted, with little to no associated mortality reported among the animals. Milk loss resulting from symptomatic cattle to date is ‘too limited’ to have a major impact on supply and there should be no impact on the price of milk or other dairy products. The disease doesn’t appear to affect dry cows.
Industry bodies warn against ‘unnecessary or unfair’ impacts to trade. The National Milk Producers Federation (NMPF), the International Dairy Foods Association (IDFA), the U.S. Dairy Export Council (USDEC), and Dairy Management Inc. (DMI) said that enhanced biosecurity protocols were underway on dairy farms.
