Piles of dead cows seen in Central Valley as bird flu outbreaks increase

An epidemic is sweeping through Tulare County's dairy industry.

Dead cows and calves were piled up on the roadside on a recent 98-degree afternoon. A swarm of blackflies were buzzing and banging on the windows of idling cars. Meanwhile, crows and vultures waited nearby, staring at the taut carcass, baking in the October heat.

Since the H5N1 avian influenza virus was first reported in California in early August, 124 dairy herds and 13 people, all dairy workers, have been infected.

And dairy experts say the virus is still spreading.

Two dead cows lie on the edge of a dairy farm in Tipton, California.

After being informed of the latest case count of 105, Anja Raudabaugh, CEO of California dairy trade group Western United Dairies, said she was “surprised that there were so few reports.” “This situation is not slowing down.”

Jimmy Andreoli II, a spokesperson for Baker Commodities, a rendering company with facilities in Southern California, made a similar observation, noting that his company's employees are picking up a growing number of dead cows throughout the San Joaquin Valley. He said he is doing so.

“There has been a clear increase in the number of animals falling recently, and some of that can be attributed to the long, hot summer we've had. And some of that can certainly be attributed to the H5N1 virus. It is believed that one of the drivers picked up 20 to 30 animals a day from one farm,” he said.

He said some farms were intentionally leaving cattle on the roadside to reduce contamination and prevent further spread of infection between farms. In other locations, animals are left on site but separated from live animals and humans.

Central Valley dairy farms have been disrupted in recent weeks by an outbreak of H5N1 avian influenza. Industry experts said mortality rates among infected cattle were higher than expected.

Diseased carcasses are taken to Baker's rendering facility in Kerman, where they are either “recycled” and turned into “high-protein” animal feed and fertilizer, or turned into liquids for use in fuels, paints, varnishes and lubricants. It is used for such things. Like various industrial products. ”

He said that despite the large influx of sick cattle, the Kerman plant was operating normally with no service interruptions. However, due to the large amount of animal carcasses and the “additional time required for disinfection procedures,” pick-ups in some areas have been changed from a daily to an every-other-day schedule.

“Efficient service is provided to all customers,” he said.

Despite the harrowing scenes along Tipton's roadside, John Corsland, a former veterinary epidemiologist with the U.S. Department of Agriculture, believes that keeping animals in piles, even if they are picked and eaten by buzzards and crows, He said there was probably little risk to public health. And flies.

“Once death occurs, the virus stops replicating, and decomposition and heat begin to neutralize the live virus,” he said. “Viruses survive on the surface of carcasses, but not for long at 100 degrees, but the temperature and acidification quickly neutralize viruses inside carcasses, at least the influenza virus.”

Laudabaugh said she and the dairy farmers she represents had been reading about the virus for months before the outbreak occurred, but the devastation and unevenness with which the virus hit California's dairy farms was overwhelming. No one was ready, he said.

He said that although cattle on some farms are infected, they appear to be largely unaffected. In other animals, animals are dying en masse. She said she knows of one farm where almost half of the animals died.

He also said some breeds have been hit harder than others. For example, Holsteins seem to suffer more than Jerseys.

“The reason is that Holsteins have higher milk production, so the virus enjoys more volume,” she said, pointing to studies showing the virus' affinity for mammary tissue. Ta.

Is the disease killing livestock with its hooves, or are farmers making the difficult decision to euthanize animals that appear to have symptoms, especially bacterial pneumonia, mastitis, and bloat? When I asked her if that was the case, she answered that it was the former.

Continuing outbreaks of H5N1 infections in dairy herds in California are causing concern among dairy industry operators as milk productivity declines in recovered cows.

She said most of the animals that contract the virus and die are young animals that are entering their second lactation cycle. (She says most dairy cows go through five or six lactation cycles before being taken out of production and processed into beef or rendered.)

As a result, she said, farmers are doing everything they can to keep these young animals alive “given the extreme husbandry and husbandry and cost of raising these animals.” “On the other side of the virus, there is hope for farmers that sustainable production will resume. So if they are going to cull, it is definitely a last resort.”

It is unknown whether infected dairy cows will regain full production when entering a new lactation cycle. Observations show that in the current cycle, production is significantly reduced, often down to 60% or 70%.

He said depression was becoming a growing problem for dairy farmers who were struggling with high herd mortality and the economic burden of disease.

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1. Brandon Mendonsa, 37, a third-generation dairy farmer from Tipton, lost 28 dairy cows to the H5N1 virus, known as the novel coronavirus for cows. There is no cure for the virus, which causes flu-like symptoms in cows and causes many deaths. Holstein dairy cows sold at auction for $2,200, costing Mendonsa $60,000 per cow. 2. Healthy dairy cows soak up the morning light on the grounds of Mendonsa Farm in Tipton, California.

She says many farmers could be doomed if cows don't return to full production.

“There's real fear,” she said.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture has a program in place to reimburse farmers for production losses caused by the virus. The program covers the three weeks of production lost when cows are removed from the milking herd to recover, and the subsequent seven days when production is still low.

But as of now, there are no programs to pay farmers and dairy workers affected by the virus, and farmworker advocates say there is no incentive for dairy workers to report symptoms and isolate. Disease experts are also concerned. 10 days (current estimate).

“The vast majority of dairy workers in California have no protections. Most of them are immigrants. And I think at least half of them are undocumented,” said the United Farm Workers of America. said Elizabeth Strater, National Vice President and Director of Strategic Campaigns.

“These are people who don't have a special relationship of trust with state or federal officials.”

She said that while dairy jobs are coveted by immigrants and are not as seasonal as crop work, few Americans are hungry for the dangerous and back-breaking work the positions require. That means milking twice a day, often 15 hours apart, and unpredictable movement of large animals, he said.

“These workers are on the front lines of the epidemic, and if they were somehow tested and tested positive, it would be an economic disaster,” she said. “Most people in America wouldn't want to miss out on two weeks of paychecks, right? Especially those who are already among the poorest and have minimal protections, right? Without a safety net.”

She said her organization and others are trying to get information out to as many workers as possible.

“We are sharing as much information as possible about how important it is for workers to get their seasonal flu shot this year, even if they don’t always get it,” she said. Ta. “But the problem is, the seasonal flu shot doesn't protect that worker, right? It protects me. It protects you. It protects the rest of the public from situations where a person exchanges the substance with another person.

Recombination between H5N1 and human influenza viruses, which can result in a more infectious or harmful virus when the two viruses mix, is a major concern for public health officials.

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said the public health risk from H5N1 is currently low, but it is working with states to monitor people infected with animals.

The sun rises over the cows on a dairy farm in Tipton, California.

So far, the number of workers reported to be infected with H5N1 remains low, but conversations with Tipton residents suggest the number of cases is probably higher than reported. Ta.

“A lot of people have it,” said the woman who works behind the register at Tipton's Dollar General, one of the few stores in this small farming community just off Highway 99.

The woman declined to give her name and explained that her husband works illegally as a dairy worker in Tulare County. She said his job was unprotected, unsafe and feared retaliation.

“The symptoms seem to be pretty mild so far,” she says. “People can keep working.”