According to the release, this is the first detection of a highly pathogenic avian flu virus in the United States since June previous year, which led to the depopulation of almost 50 million birds and became the most expensive agricultural emergency in USA history.
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Now the same thing may happen again after the newest strain, H7N8, was found on an IN turkey farm.
Animal health officials investigating a bird flu outbreak in southwest in have ordered 156,000 chickens at one of 10 affected commercial poultry farms to be euthanized, raising the total number of birds to be killed above 400,000. The birds typically are killed using a type of suffocating foam, though due to cold weather, officials in IN also have had to use carbon dioxide gas and a device that delivers a fatal head injury. Though most of the flock on the IN farm was killed within 29 hours. Last year’s H5N2 outbreak cost the poultry industry .3 billion, Reuters reported. “Industry and poultry producers have been doing a lot to strengthen their biosecurity so we are hopeful that as we respond very quickly to this virus that we can get it contained”. In addition, there are 155,000 egg-laying chickens that are NOT infected, but are being depopulated, again as a precaution.
Health officials and animal experts are trying to contain the spread of a new and potentially more unsafe strain of bird flu.
The federal government sprang into action last week after confirmation that the virus had hit an IN turkey farm, alerting other states to the danger and putting workers who might have been exposed to the virus under surveillance. APHIS noted that low-pathogenic H7 viruses, though, have been known to mutate into highly pathogenic strains, which have the potential to spread quickly and cause many deaths in domestic poultry.
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About 10 farms in IN have been affected with the bird flu. She says the impact of similar outbreaks in states including Iowa and Minnesota has motivated in producers to take a proactive approach to stamping out the disease. Birds with low pathogenic strains often show no signs of infection or have only minor symptoms.
