The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) has confirmed the detection of highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) in a dairy herd in New Mexico, as well as 5 additional dairy herds in Texas. APHIS shared on Fri., March 29 that its National Veterinary Services Laboratories (NVSL) in Ames, Iowa, was working to confirm presumptive positive test results from New Mexico, Texas and Idaho herds; this announcement is a follow up to that information.
This marks the first known case of HPAI in cattle in New Mexico, and adds to the two detections in Texas that were first announced on Monday, March 25. To date, USDA has confirmed the detection of HPAI in dairy herds in Texas (7) Kansas (2), Michigan (1), and New Mexico (1). The presumptive positive test results for the Idaho herd are still pending analysis at NVSL.
APHIS continues to work closely with the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), as well as state veterinary and public health officials, to investigate and diagnose activities regarding the illness in dairy cows causing decreased lactation, low appetite, and other clinical signs.
USDA and federal and state partners will continue to share additional updates as information becomes available. APHIS has also prepared a Frequently Asked Questions document, which can be accessed here.
In addition, today, the CDC reported that a person in Texas has tested positive for HPAI A(H5N1) virus; the CDC also stated in its announcement that this infection does not change the A(H5N1) bird flu human health risk assessment for the U.S. general public, which CDC considers to be low. However, people with close or prolonged, unprotected exposures to infected birds or other animals (including livestock), or to environments contaminated by infected birds or other animals, are at greater risk of infection. CDC has interim recommendations for prevention, monitoring, and public health investigations of HPAI A(H5N1) viruses.