Bird flu in cows: KDA says no concern to commercial milk supply

WICHITA, Kan. (KSNW) – Bird flu has been identified in two commercial dairy operations in Kansas and another in Texas.

The Kansas Department of Agriculture said as far as they know, this is the first time dairy cattle have tested positive for the virus.

The KDA said there’s no concern to the commercial milk supply. The pasteurization process inactivates any bacteria or viruses. There are still questions about how avian flu is spreading to cattle, and KDA said they’re still in the early stages of finding out.

They said right now, 10% of cows in dairies that have reported the outbreak are showing symptoms of bird flu.

The flu isn’t very serious in cows. There’s a very low death rate, and they typically recover within about ten days.

There haven’t been any indications the virus is spreading from cow to cow.

It’s believed the virus is only being spread directly from wild birds to cattle.

“We know that our cows have exposure to these wild birds,” said Kansas Department of Agriculture Animal Health Commissioner Justin Smith. “We’re just trying to determine, you know, where did that impact and how did it change that we’re just now finding it?”

Smith said the virus mainly seems to be affecting dairies in the southwest corner of Kansas.

For now, the state is working on doing studies on every dairy housing cattle with symptoms consistent with the illness. Those include low milk production and a loss of appetite.