Highly pathogenic bird flu in New York’s backyard

A dangerous form of bird flu has been discovered in a private flock of birds at a Long Island home, prompting an urgent state and federal response to contain the infectious disease.

The United States Department of Agriculture and the United States Department of Agriculture confirmed a positive test for highly pathogenic avian flu on Saturday in what it described as a “small, non-commercial backyard flock” of eight non-poultry birds in Suffolk County.

“Government officials have quarantined damaged buildings and birds on the property will be evacuated to prevent the spread of disease. Birds of the flock will not enter the food system,” the USDA Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service said in a statement.

State and federal authorities have also said they will launch a major biosecurity response, with testing and monitoring in surrounding areas.

The disease is described as highly contagious and often fatal to chickens. Infections in humans with avian influenza are rare and usually involve prolonged exposure to sick or dead birds. According to the Center for Disease Control and Preventionbut it is often fatal when it occurs.

It wasn’t immediately clear from the federal statement which exact strain of bird flu had been identified in the Suffolk County birds, although the USDA said this week the Eurasian H5 strain had been recently discovered in the United States, and the CDC said they appeared. To be specifically H5N1.

So far this year bird flu has been reported in commercial flocks in Indiana and Kentucky and in a backyard flock in Virginia. It has also been found in wild birds in at least nine states.

There have been no human cases yet, and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said this week they view the recent outbreak as a low risk to the general public.

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