H5N1 Has Returned to Indiana

Unfortunately, the return of avian migration season has become synonymous with increased H5N1 outbreaks in poultry flocks. Our poultry friends in Indiana’s northern counties are being particularly impacted. The announcement of another infected flock has become a daily occurrence.

The impact on poultry farms is devastating! Birds die and euthanizing flocks is the only means for mitigating spread once a farm is infected. The impact of dairy herds is significant as well, even though animal death is minimal.

Now is the time to implement stricter bio-security protocols on your farm! Especially for those dairy herds located in close proximity to infected poultry flocks. It’s up to you to protect your herds. Now is the time!

The Indiana Board of Animal Health has issued some very simple and effective practices that are easy to incorporate into your daily activity and can become simple habits for you and your team.

Think in terms of “hands, feet and tires!” Below is BOAH’s ideas:

1.     Farm Workers and Families (including children, all full and part time employees)

• Hand-wash and sanitize regularly before and after contact with animals, milk and milking equipment
• Keep dedicated barn shoes or boots on the farm. Do not wear these boots elsewhere, even to your house. Keep boots clean and disinfect them. Keeping a can of Lysol spray in your truck for frequent boot spraying is very effective.
• Wear freshly laundered, dedicated clothing to the barns daily and don’t wear them elsewhere. Now might be the right time to provide commercial uniform service for your team.
• Finally, keep pets out of animal areas and be extra cautious if your farm workers or their family members work on a poultry farm.

2.     Visitors (Anyone in contact with cattle, milk or milking equipment, such as nutritionist, veterinarian or feed delivery.

• Avoid unnecessary touching or contact with animals, milk or milking equipment. Wash or sanitize before and after contacts.
• Wear disposable shoe covers or clean and disinfect footwear.
• Require these visitors park in designated areas away from animals. It is good to have them clean wheel wells with liquid disinfectant and floorboards with aerosolized or liquid disinfectant such as Lysol.
• Visitor log is very valuable in recording who comes on the farm and when.

3.     Milk Haulers (essential for reducing risk of farm-to-farm spread)

• Require milk haulers to wash and sanitize hands before and after each visit. Disposable gloves use is a great practice to require.
• Haulers should wear disposable boot covers. Disinfecting shoes and truck cabs before entering is extremely helpful.
• Again, wearing clean clothing and wash them daily.
• Finally, avoid spilling/dumping milk- especially from other farms. Soak up outdoor spills with pine shavings.

One final suggestion…consider incorporating the “Danish Entry System” into your practices. This idea uses a marker or barrier that alerts employees and guest that, by crossing this boundary, there is a whole other set of bio-security protocols they are required to follow. This system is used throughout the pork and poultry industry as a standard practice. This marker can be as simple as a bench or a set of traffic cones. Setting a bench at your barn entryway is very effective at heightening awareness of the requirement for stringent bio-security compliance on your farm

H5N1 is a real threat! The financial impact, let alone the added labor needed to deal with the illness is significant.

Small practices go a long way! Don’t bring anything in and don’t allow anything out!