In the past two months, cases of HPAI (highly pathogenic avian influenza) have wreaked havoc on both the dairy and poultry industries in California. To date, there have been 402 dairy herds in California, along with herds in Utah and Idaho, that have been affected with the disease. In addition to the dairy herds, there has also been 49 confirmed positive cases in poultry flocks in the last 30 days in CA, OR, UT, and AZ, with a total of 5.31 million birds sickened by the disease. In response to the mounting concerns around HPAI, earlier this week, the Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture announced mandatory surveillance testing on all tanker loads of milk that come from Pennsylvania dairy farms.
Since HPAI first surfaced early last spring, many dairy folks in Pennsylvania have questioned why the quarantines are necessary, why we need to test, and why we need to prioritize on-farm biosecurity. The situation in California really demonstrates why all of this matters and how important it is we change our narrative now before it is too late.
When HPAI infects poultry, the entire flock must be depopulated, which is devastating for the producer both financially and emotionally. While dairy cows do not have to be euthanized because of HPAI, the dairy farms in California are seeing much more significant issues with HPAI than what was earlier reported. Many of the herds are reporting a 50 percent infection rate across the milking herd and severe losses in milk production, with some reporting 5 percent involuntary culls from the disease. Both the herds in California and in other parts of the country have reported long-term effects resulting from the disease, including late gestation abortions, decreased milk production across the lactation, and poor reproductive performance for months after the disease has passed.
In September, we invited a Michigan dairy producer to join our monthly call and share how the disease impacted his herd. He spoke about elevated temperatures at 5 degrees above normal in 50 percent of his 500-cow herd and the need for “all hands on deck” to treat the symptoms they were seeing in the herd. The disease cost him $100,000 in the first month of the outbreak, with the long-term financial loss still playing out. He spoke about how surprised he was when he came to Pennsylvania over the summer and saw how closely our dairy and poultry farms were laid out. With service providers, custom equipment operators, and feed and milk trucks moving between farms constantly, he said it would be hard to contain the virus if it came to Pennsylvania.
That is why we need to change the narrative when we talk about HPAI and how we can protect both our dairy herds and poultry flocks from the disease. I have been in many conversations with both dairy farmers and service providers who question why biosecurity and surveillance for early detection are important. They speak about the fear of being found positive and what that would mean for their milk market or for their farm’s image in general. What they are not talking about is what happens if the disease actually comes to Pennsylvania. From my perspective, a farmer’s biggest fear should be how a positive HPAI case could devastate your herd health and ultimately your financial well-being.
If a dairy farm does become positive with HPAI, their milk can still move to market as long as they put a biosecurity plan in place and demonstrate that they are doing what is needed to mitigate the spread of the disease. They also can receive financial assistance from USDA for any hardship resulting from the disease, if they report it and work to mitigate the spread. Positive farms would also be kept confidential, with reporting through USDA only at the county level, not at the farm level.
Waiting to develop your biosecurity plan or be proactive about testing until HPAI is already in Pennsylvania is too late. If a case isn’t found in time, it can spread through your herd before you realize what is happening and cause rapid infections. It can also spread from your farm to your neighbors through foot and equipment traffic coming in and out of your farm. In fact, more than 50 percent of the cases in California are thought to have spread through foot and equipment traffic. Without early detection, one infected farm can become 10 infected farms in a matter of days.
The two things that any dairy farm can do to protect its herd from HPAI include:
- Signing up for the voluntary surveillance program. In addition to the mandatory surveillance program on tanker trucks, the Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture is strongly encouraging individual dairy farms to enroll in the lactating cow voluntary surveillance program they introduced in July. Despite their willingness to provide all the sampling material and cover all costs associated with testing, they still only have a handful of farms signed up to participate. But testing allows you to detect the disease up to seven days sooner than you would by just watching for symptoms in your herd. Those seven extra days could help you build a more proactive plan to treat symptoms in the herd. It can also give you seven extra days to make sure you are not spreading it to other farms.
- Implementing a biosecurity plan. With at least 50 percent of the cases in California thought to have been spread through foot and wheel traffic, having a biosecurity plan in place that provides clear expectations for both cattle movements and for visitors coming on and off your farm is critical. Also, just writing a biosecurity plan and letting it lay on your desk isn’t enough. Making sure your employees and the visitors coming in and out your driveway are following the plan is critical. Writing a plan doesn’t have to be overwhelming. The Center has a simple plan template you can use, and Penn State Extension staff are available to help you put yours together if you want extra help.
With what we are seeing play out in California, having the HPAI virus within our state borders would not be good for anyone – not dairy farmers and especially not poultry producers. The reality, though, is as long as it continues to spread, we are always only one truckload away from it coming to Pennsylvania. Consider changing your narrative and take action now to protect your herd against what could happen if and when it arrives. You can find links to both the biosecurity plan resources and the information on the voluntary surveillance program on our website at www.centerfordairyexcellence.org/hpai-industry-calls/. You can also contact Valerie Mason-Faith, our risk education program manager, who can help walk you through how to take advantage of these resources at (717) 550-8720.
Editor’s Note: This column is written by Jayne Sebright, executive director for the Center for Dairy Excellence.