ODA confirms first Klamath County case of Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza
The Oregon Department of Agriculture and the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service has confirmed the presence of highly pathogenic avian influenza in a non-commercial backyard flock in Klamath County.
This is the first HPAI confirmation in Klamath County, ODA said Friday. The affected flock included approximately 25 birds including ducks chickens and guinea fowl.
ODA personnel, in partnership with the USDA, humanely euthanized the birds on the property, to prevent the spread of disease. Birds from the flock will not enter the food system. There is no immediate public health concern due to the avian influenza virus detection, ODA said.
According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the public health risk associated with these avian influenza detections in birds remains low. As a reminder, the proper handling and cooking of all poultry and eggs to an internal temperature of 165 ˚F is recommended as a general food safety precaution.
ODA advises commercial poultry farms and backyard flock owners to be vigilant with biosecurity measures and surveillance. Reducing or eliminating contact between wild birds and domestic flocks is the best way to protect domestic birds from this disease. Anyone involved with poultry production from the small backyard to the large commercial producer should review their biosecurity activities to assure the health of their birds.
For information on biosecurity for backyard flocks, visit APHIS online http://healthybirds.aphis.usda.gov. In addition, APHIS also has materials about biosecurity, including videos, checklists, and a toolkit available at: https://www.aphis.usda.gov/aphis/ourfocus/animalhealth/animal-disease-information/avian/defend-the-flock-program/dtf-resources/dtf-resources.
ODA also provides online information on biosecurity for backyard flocks at oda.direct/Avian-Influenza or en Espańol at the oda.direct/AvianInfluenza-Spanish
Death or illness among domestic birds (backyard flocks) should be reported to ODA. Please report by calling 503-986-4711 (ALT phone 1-800-347-7028.)
ODA will continue to announce a county’s first case of HPAI in backyard flocks but will not announce subsequent detections in the same county. ODA lists all Oregon’s HPAI cases online at oda.direct/Avian-Influenza.
All US cases in commercial and backyard flocks will be listed on the APHIS website at https://www.aphis.usda.gov/aphis/ourfocus/animalhealth/animal-disease-information/avian/avian-influenza/2022-hpai.
