Health officials have euthanized a Minnesota commercial turkey flock after tests confirmed it was positive for highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI). The flock contained approximately 140,000 birds and is the state’s first confirmed case of the disease since last spring.
As is typically the case during spring or fall, officials say the disease is likely connected to the seasonal migration of wild birds. Commercial flocks in South Dakota and Utah have also tested positive for the virus.
Michael Crusan, spokesman for the Minnesota Board of Animal Health, says now is the time for producers to keep up with biosecurity measures and keep the area around their animals clean. Minnesota Public Radio says poultry farmers should be on the lookout for birds that eat or drink less than normal and a drop in egg production, depression, or sudden death.
Last year, HPAI cost America’s poultry producers almost 59 million birds in 47 states.
(From the National Association of Farm Broadcasters)