MITCHELL, S.D. (MITCHELLNOW) Late last week South Dakota joined Idaho, Kansas, Michigan, New Mexico, North Carolina, Ohio and Texas as the eighth state to report a confirmed case of Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza, more commonly called “bird flu”. The South Dakota dairy herd became the twenty-sixth in the country to become infected. The county where the infection was discovered in South Dakota has not been released.
South Dakota Health Secretary Melissa Magstadt says that there have been no reported cases of bird flu in humans and that the department has no current active investigations. Magstadt says that the Public Health Lab is ready to receive samples and the Health Department is distributing pertinent information about the bird flu – how to recognize and treat it etc. – to medical providers throughout the state.
The USDA points out there is no danger of contaminated milk from cows infected by bird flu as the pasteurization process kills the pathogens that cause the disease.