LDAF enhances protective measures, encourages increased biosecurity in the wake of emerging cattle disease
For immediate release: April 5, 2024
BATON ROUGE – The Louisiana Department of Agriculture and Forestry (LDAF) is encouraging dairy producers to increase biosecurity measures at their operations in response to several reports of an emerging cattle disease across the nation. Herds affected by the emerging cattle disease have had detections of the Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza (HPAI) virus. It is currently unknown if this is the only contributing cause of the cattle illness. To date, HPAI has been detected in dairy cattle in Texas, New Mexico, Kansas, Michigan, Idaho, and Ohio. At this time, there have been no reported detections of HPAI in Louisiana dairy cattle or other livestock.
In an effort to protect the dairy herds and poultry flocks in Louisiana, a Certificate of Veterinary Inspection (CVI) being used to ship dairy cattle from any state(s) that has, or has had, a detection of HPAI virus in dairy cattle in the past 30 days will be valid for not more than 7 days. All CVIs for dairy cattle from a state(s) that has, or has had, a detection of HPAI in dairy cattle in the past 30 days shall be accompanied by a CVI containing the following supplemental statement by the Accredited Veterinarian:
“All animals identified on this Certificate of Veterinary Inspection (CVI) have been inspected and do not originate from a premises with a confirmed detection of HPAI or that is currently under investigation as a suspect premises.”
More information is available online at ldaf.la.gov/animals/transporting. View the Order of the State Veterinarian here .
Individuals from Louisiana interested in transporting animals and animal products to other states and countries should contact the destination state/country to learn about their import requirements before transporting animals.
“Hopefully Louisiana will not see a confirmed case of HPAI, but we will continue to closely monitor the situation. In order to protect the health of Louisiana livestock and minimize the impact HPAI could potentially have on our dairy and poultry producers, we all need to be diligent in practicing enhanced biosecurity,” said LDAF Commissioner Mike Strain, D.V.M. “This is the easiest to implement and most effective measure to take against the potential spread of HPAI into Louisiana.”
In addition to adhering to strict biosecurity practices in operations, LDAF recommends quarantining new animals for 30 days before introducing them into a herd. If dairy producers notice symptoms - acute sudden drop in milk production, changes in milk color/consistency, decreased feed intake, and other clinical signs, they should contact their herd veterinarian and the Louisiana Department of Agriculture and Forestry immediately at 225-925-3980. The herd veterinarian will assess these animals and consult with LDAF for additional steps.
According to the USDA, at this stage, there is no concern about the safety of the commercial milk supply or that this circumstance poses any increased risk to consumer health. Dairies are required to only send milk from healthy animals into processing for human consumption. Milk from affected animals is being diverted or destroyed so that it does not enter the food supply. In addition, pasteurization effectively kills bacteria and viruses like influenza in milk and is required for any milk sold in stores. Consumption of raw milk is discouraged. Additional information regarding milk safety during HPAI outbreaks is available from the Food and Drug Administration.
LDAF is collaborating with producers, veterinarians, officials with other State Departments of Agriculture, and the USDA to closely monitor the situation to protect Louisiana producers and their livestock. Producers should report any possible symptoms to the Louisiana Department of Agriculture and Forestry at 225-925-3980.
Commercial producers should review their biosecurity activities to ensure the health of their animals. Poultry and Dairy operations can find materials about biosecurity, including checklists and a toolkit, at https://www.aphis.usda.gov/livestock-poultry-disease/avian/avian-influenza/hpai-detections/livestock
For more information and guidance from the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS), visit https://www.aphis.usda.gov/livestock-poultry-disease/avian/avian-influenza/hpai-detections/livestock .
HPAI Current Situation Summary can be found at H5N1 Bird Flu: Current Situation Summary | Avian Influenza (Flu) (cdc.gov)
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For interview requests, please contact PressSecretary@ldaf.state.la.us .
For more information regarding the press release, please contact LDAFCommunications@ldaf.state.la.us .