Bird flu found in Van Buren County dairy herd

GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. (WOOD) — The Michigan Department of Agriculture and Rural Development has confirmed a bird flu outbreak within a dairy herd in Van Buren County.

It is the 27th outbreak among Michigan dairy herds since the first one was found in late March and the first one in Van Buren County.

It is, however, just the third outbreak since the end of May, the same month that MDARD ratcheted up restrictions and implemented mandatory practices to try to cut down on spread.

The bird flu epidemic started in earnest in 2022 and has impacted farms across the country. In the last two years, more than 100 million poultry have been culled because of infections. It returned to Michigan in earnest in March, with the first infection registered among a dairy herd in Montcalm County. Since then, another 24 dairy herds have confirmed outbreaks, and another eight poultry flocks.

Highly pathogenic avian influenza is quite deadly in birds, but the survival rate is high among cattle. Though it is rare, humans can also catch the virus.

Since the 2022 outbreak started, 14 human cases have been reported in the U.S., including two in Michigan . Most human cases are fairly mild, however, a person from Mexico died earlier this year from a bird flu infection.

MDARD issued the “HPAI Risk Reduction Response Order” on May 1, outlining specific measures that poultry and dairy farmers should take to try to prevent spreading the virus. It includes strict protocols for disinfecting vehicles and equipment and shutting down animal showcases until the spread is under control.

“We know that transmission of this virus is possible not just from cow to cow, but through people, vehicle and equipment movement, as well. The decreasing number of positive detections can be attributed in large part to the combined and coordinated federal interstate movement restrictions and state level biosecurity requirements,” MDARD Director Tim Boring said.

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