New bird flu variant found in Nevada dairy cows has experts sounding alarms: ‘We have never been closer to a pandemic from this virus’
New bird flu variant found in Nevada dairy cows has experts sounding alarms: ‘We have never been closer to a pandemic from this virus’
Dairy herds in Nevada have been infected by a version of the H5N1 bird flu not previously seen in cows, putting virologists on high alert.
You're viewing a single thread.
As a dairy farmer myself, im paying extreem attention to all of this. Ive been paying attention to it since we found out about it a year ago. Our response has been absolute garbage and ill be one of the first to call out our absolutely shitty response. Im on the front lines right now. We have not dealt with this problem with the seriousness and attention it deserves.
That being said, this comment chain feels wierd. Like, the discourse im seeing is setting off real red flags right now for me. Im not so sure that lemmy is as secure as i expected it to be.
Im still here and will stay here, but something doesnt feel right about our conversation in this thread right now.
It's weird but you can't say what is weird or why.
You what's actually weird? Your comment goes on for three paragraphs and says absolutely nothing but somehow has 50 upvotes. That's very weird
Yeah you are right. Sleep deprivation is the only thing i can blame.
What are some of the best practices and precautions you yourself are taking or can take in this kind of situation? Must be rough though, I'm sorry.
Wash your hands. Dont drink raw milk.
All employees are provided free diposible ppe. Gloves, face masks, face shields. No one really uses them, and from what we know of the virus, the risk even for those of us who are handling animals every day, is very very low. Im not worried about catching bird flu, im worried about my cows catching it. The negative health impacts in humans is small and low. It hasnt crossed over strongly enough to cause us damage.
The farm workers that have been diagnosed with bird flu? It was conjunctivitis, aka pinkeye. Hardly something most people worry about.
But on the other hand, the cows do get sick. Fatality is nonexistant to low, except for the west coast for some reason, but the cows do run fevers and do lose milk production. Its a virus, so the best care we can support our cattle with are supportive. Push water and electrolytes, give medicine to lower fever. And wait. Same as if your kid gets the flu.
And last of all. Do. Not. Drink. Raw. Milk.
If your cat drinks h5n1 infected milk, it will develope brain swelling and die. Currently nothing happens to humans, that we know of. But If all we have to do to prevent that is pasteurization, why wouldnt we? And if a wild mutation is all it takes to get a spillover event into humans, why would we take that risk?
Yeah that all makes total sense, common sense, even lol, thank you. I was moreso wondering about any preventative measures or practices you could take to protect your cows from contracting the virus. I understand it spreads like any other virus, so I suppose there really isn't much else you could feasibly do. I appreciate your insight
Ah i understand. No problem.
The current vector that is infecting dairies is from infected wild bird populations. We cant stop that. Blackbirds pigeons starlings finches. Theres too much bird food around everywhere. Cow to cow transmittion from one location to another is not really a factor. Its wild birds.
My dairy has implemented extra tracking in the form of, well, its basically a fitbit for cows. And with the data we collect, we can detect sick cows when they are still subclinical. It gives us a huge heads up and improves the health of the herd because we can start supportive treatment sooner. But it is not preventative.
What we need is vaccinations. The poultry industry had vaccinations for decades for bird flu. They didnt use it. We could have a cow vaccine spun up in 6 weeks, but for some reason we couldnt get usda approval in the last year before trump. The likelihood of us getting that cow vaccine approved now... its not looking too good in my opinion.
I'm sure that this seems obvious to you, but it's not clear to me... are you saying that human to human transmission isn't worth worrying about, even if the virus mutated to be more infectious between humans?
Having a quick read, it seems like infections in humans range from unnoticeable to very severe, so I guess it's going to be a question of the ratio between severe and mild cases, which is unknown level given that we would need a mutation before it became relevant.
Did I just answer my own question?
In any case, this threat to your dairy must be very stressful. Good luck!
Obviously we dont want anyone to get sick. But the normal cases that we have seen so far, the symptoms are mild. These cases have been, for the most part, from individuals that had handled infected animals or had close proximity to them. Dairy workers, poultry farmers, back yard chicken enthusiasts, etc. The more severe cases tend to be individuals with compromised immune systems or pre existing conditions.
What we want to avoid, and what has not happened so far, is the virus spreading from human to human. All cases so far are believed to be from infected animals infecting a human. This is good. Just like with covid, or any novel disease for that matter, the worst thing you can do is have a spillover event where a new virus mutates just enough to infect a new species and the infection is contagious between individuals in that population . The new bird flu has not reached that stage. It may eventually, or it may never. But for the vast majority of the population, dont touch dead birds, dont drink raw milk, dont lick bird poop off of park benches. And you will be fine.
I hope you can figure out what's weird about it and share. It seems like a normal Lemmy thread to me:
- Concerns and questions about public health
- Acknowledgement of the political challenges we face
- People getting caught up on the small details in other comments
- Sarcasm as a coping mechanism
- People apologizing when they've made an error
Don't take the list above as any kind of condemnation; I do all of them all the time, too.
Eh i think it was lack of sleep and a false alarm of the ole spidey sense going off.
But yeah, for a minute there something didnt seem right. now that there are more comments, it all seems good again.
Yeah the comments are pretty rational
... lemmy has misinformation, just like everywhere else. Especially saw it in the lead up to the US Elections
And the bigger it gets, the worse it will become. Lemmy will have an "eternal September" just like every other place
Howdy, Podunk. Rednecks have to watch out on Lemmy.
There is some manipulation happening, my bullshit sensor has pinged more than once. There are also some folks that might be aliens or tankies or some sort of venomous communist/vegan you definitely wouldn't want to share a free love commune with.
How likely is it that blue rare steak would transmit H5N1, do you reckon? USDA study.
There is currently no study that i have seen that has even hinted at any flu virus being transmitted through meat consumption.
And biologically speaking, its not really a vector that any influenza virus would be a real threat in. The common vectors of air and saliva from breathing or coughing are where flu viruses excel.
That being said, the usda has found that cooking temps as low as 120 degrees farenheight significally inactivate the virus.
Where you should be worried is raw milk. Pasteurization was developed for a reason. The science is over a hundred years old. Before bird flu, i would occasionally run over to the dairy and fill up a jar of milk rather than go to the store. Just something for the morning cheerios when i was low on milk from the store. I will not do that now. Drinking raw milk now is like playing russian roulette with patient zero in a brand new pandemic. Do not do it. Pasteurized milk only.
Thanks! That's about how I understand it, as well.
I get from the study that if your beef is properly aged, it should be pretty much impossible.
I had raw milk a few times, as a kid. Dad ended up with a Holstein through a funny trade, had a small Charolais herd. Didn't care for it, I could taste the weeds. Nothing wrong with some homogenization and pasteurization.
I used to drink raw milk on occasion too. Proximity and all that. But once we realized what we had in march of last year, that relaxed attitude went out the window.
I have not looked in depth about aging beef as a preventative measure, but given the mechanisms in action when you age beef, i would find it hard for the virus to remain intact. Looks like ive got more to research tonight. But, cooking your food properly will destroy the virus. Same as pasturization. Turns out viruses hate high temperatures.
The wife and I like what is basically steak sushi. We don't eat steak all the time, but when we do, it's minimum sear. Cold center.
We are aware that we run an elevated risk for e. Coli.
We're handling chicken with gloves until we get a better handle on it.
I really hope the bad old days don't come back, it's a real pain in the ass.
Honestly, i wouldnt sweat it. Ecoli in that context is much more of a risk. And wiith safe food handling, your risk is pretty low.
Secure? What makes you believe Lemmy is secure?