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Farmers Must Kill 4.2 Million Chickens After Bird Flu Hits Iowa Egg Farm

More than 4 million chickens in Iowa will have to be killed after a case of the highly pathogenic bird flu was detected at a large egg farm, the state announced Tuesday.

Crews are in the process of killing 4.2 million chickens after the disease was found at a farm in Sioux County, Iowa, making it the latest in a yearslong outbreak that now is affecting dairy cattle as well. Last week, the virus was confirmed at an egg farm west of Minneapolis, leading to the slaughter of nearly 1.4 million chickens.

Overall, 92.34 million birds have been killed since the outbreak began in 2022, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture.

Although bird flu has become somewhat common among poultry, its spread to cattle has added to worries about the disease. In May, a second dairy farmworker was diagnosed with bird flu, and the virus was detected in both beef and milk. It has been confirmed on dairy cattle farms in nine states.

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Biosecurity essential to minimize PRRS risk on hog farms

Video: Biosecurity essential to minimize PRRS risk on hog farms


PRRS cost the U.S. swine industry an estimated $1.2 billion annually. What can managers and veterinarians do to minimize the risk in at a hog facility? Are there certain biosecurity protocols that help reduce the risk of this damaging virus infecting their herds? Joining us to provide management tips for the barn, feed mill and feed as we ramp up for possible PRRS infections this fall is Dr. Alex Hintz, a veterinarian with Novus.