They found bird flu in cows

this cow milk U.S. officials say people from Texas and Kansas have tested positive for bird flu. Officials with the Texas Animal Health Commission confirmed that the influenza virus is the H5N1 A strain, which has been known for decades to cause outbreaks in birds and occasionally infect humans.

The virus is affecting older dairy cows in these states and New Mexico, causing reduced milk production and appetite.

The notice comes a week after Minnesota officials declared a poultry outbreak at a farm where goats were diagnosed with the virus. This is believed to be the first time the disease, also known as highly pathogenic avian influenza, has been found in cattle in the United States.

Commercial milk supply security The risk to the public is lowsaid the Ministry of Agriculture. Dairies can only supply milk from healthy animals; milk from unhealthy animals is diverted or destroyed. The agency noted that pasteurization also kills viruses and other bacteria and is a process required for all milk sold through interstate commerce.

“At this time, there are no concerns about the safety of the commercial milk supply or the health risks this situation poses to consumers,” the USDA said in a statement.

The federal government explained that testing on livestock did not find any changes in the virus that would make it more likely to spread to people.

In Texas, producers began to worry three weeks ago when cattle started getting sick, authorities saidMysterious disease of cows“Sid Miller, director of the state Department of Agriculture, said. Production dropped sharply, Cows are lethargic and eat little. “We’ve never seen anything like this before,” he said. “It’s like they have the flu.”

Experts believe the cattle appear to recover on their own over time. seven to ten days. This is different from outbreaks among poultry, where flocks of animals need to be slaughtered to eliminate the virus. Since 2022, the epidemic has killed approximately 80 million poultry on U.S. commercial farms.

So far, the virus appears to have infected about 10% of the cows in the affected herd, said Michael Payne, a food animal veterinarian and biosecurity expert at the Western Institute for Food Safety and Security at the University of California, Davis. .