Highly pathogenic avian influenza has been detected in a non-commercial backyard flock in Iowa for the first time since 2015.
Iowa Secretary of Ag Mike Naig says they’re working to implement response plans to protect the health of Iowa’s poultry flocks. “Given the size and status of this flock as a non-commercial backyard flock, there is no trade or supply chain implications from this detection.”
Samples from the flock in Pottawattamie County, Iowa were tested at the Iowa State University Veterinary Diagnostic Laboratory and then confirmed at the APHIS National Veterinary Services Laboratories in Ames, Iowa. The affected premises have been quarantined and birds on the properties have been depopulated.
State Veterinarian Dr. Jeff Kaisand says they’ve not set up a control zone, but rather a surveillance zone. “When we do this, premises ID information is critical here,” he says. “But we pulled out that information and found that there were three backyard flocks and no commercial flocks in the 10km zone around this flock.”
Kaisand says producers need to remain vigilant in their biosecurity practices. “Review your biosecurity plans,” he says. “Protect yourself from wild birds and also from other farms. And make sure you have firewalls in place there.” The surveillance zone includes parts of Pottawattamie and Mills counties.