Highly pathogenic Avian Influenza detected in wild bird in Nebraska

LINCOLN – The Nebraska Department of Agriculture (NDA) in conjunction with the United States Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) Wildlife Services and USDA’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) have confirmed the presence of highly pathogenic H5N1 avian influenza (HPAI) in a wild goose near Holmes Lake in Lincoln. This is the state’s first confirmed case of HPAI since 2015.

“While Nebraska has not seen HPAI in a backyard or commercial poultry flock within the state this year, the finding of this single goose adds Nebraska to a long list of states with confirmed cases of HPAI,” said State Veterinarian Dr. Roger Dudley. “Infected wild birds can carry the disease to new areas when migrating, so we encourage backyard poultry and commercial poultry flocks to continue to remain vigilant, practice good biosecurity and report sick or dying birds immediately.”

Symptoms of HPAI in poultry include: a decrease in water consumption; lack of energy and appetite; decreased egg production or soft-shelled, misshapen eggs; nasal discharge, coughing, sneezing; incoordination; and diarrhea. HPAI can also cause sudden death in birds even if they aren’t showing any other symptoms. HPAI can survive for weeks in contaminated environments.

Poultry owners should report unusual bird deaths or sick birds to NDA at 402-471-2351, or through USDA at 866-536-7593.

Enhanced biosecurity helps prevent the introduction and spread of viruses and diseases including HPAI. NDA and USDA have resources available to help poultry owners step up their biosecurity efforts.

Know the warning signs of infectious bird diseases like HPAI. Be on the lookout for unusual signs of behavior, severe illness and/or sudden deaths.

Restrict access to your property and poultry.

Keep it clean. Wear clean clothes, scrub boots/shoes with disinfectant and wash hands thoroughly before and after contact with your flock.

If you, your employees or family have been on other farms, or other places where there is livestock and/or poultry, clean and disinfect your vehicle tires and equipment before returning home.

Don’t share equipment, tools, or other supplies with other livestock or poultry owners.

In addition to practicing good biosecurity, all bird owners should prevent contact between their birds and wild birds, making sure wild birds cannot access domestic poultry’s feed and water sources.

Report sick birds immediately to: NDA at 402-471-2351; the USDA at 866-536-7593; or your veterinarian. Early detection is important to prevent the spread of disease.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the risk to people getting HPAI infections from birds is low. No human cases of avian influenza viruses have been detected in the United States.

All poultry entering Nebraska must be accompanied by a VS form 9-3 or Certificate of Veterinary Inspection (CVI, or health certificate). If you are considering moving an animal into Nebraska from an affected state, please call 402-471-2351 to learn more. Nebraska poultry owners wanting to ship poultry out of state should consult the state veterinarians of the destination states for import requirements.

For more information about avian influenza, visit NDA’s website at https://nda.nebraska.gov/animal/avian/index.html or the USDA’s website https://www.aphis.usda.gov/aphis/. Additional information on biosecurity for backyard flocks can be found at http://healthybirds.aphis.usda.gov.

–Nebraska Department of Agriculture