Bird Flu Deadlier Than Ever

---

                      Hundreds of deceased birds wash up on the shore

                                              (Picture by BBC)

The notorious Bird flu has made a devastating impact on animals, infecting more than 200 million poultry. So what is Bird flu? Bird flu (Avian Influenza) is a disease that primarily affects birds. This flu spreads very quickly, accordingly being able to kill flocks in under 48 hours. This flu doesn’t only affect birds though. Research by the University of Florida shows that about 1,000 herds of dairy cattle have been diagnosed with the Bird flu. From the infected dairy cows, based on capecod.gov nearly 40 people have been infected. This disease has even started affecting humans! Reports from CDC.gov show that a person hospitalized in Louisiana from the Bird flu has died, along with 66 other cases. In these cases, about 50% of people have died. That is like flipping a coin to see if you live or die! This disease is especially bad for farmers, as lots of their livestock are at risk to be infected. As these animals become infected, many die and pass on their disease to the other livestock, eventually leading to the farmer getting sick, and with a 50% mortality rate, these farmers are at risk. Symptoms of Bird flu in humans, based on Health Vermont would be fever, cough, difficulty breathing, conjunctivitis, runny/stuffy nose, muscle aches, and headaches.

So how do we prevent this? We can prevent the Bird flu by not touching or going near dead birds or wild animals, wearing protective suits while tending to diseased livestock, washing your hands if you touch any dead wild animals, getting a seasonal flu vaccine, and making sure the milk you drink is pasteurized, as if a dairy cattle is infected, it can transmit the Bird flu through its milk. This virus can survive for up to 5 weeks in a refrigerated bottle of milk! If you contract Bird flu, doctors can prescribe you with flu antiviral medicines.

Since this disease is a very big threat to farmers, the Health Department will work with farmers with sick cattle to one, see if anybody has been near the sick animal/animals, they will two, give you information, three, watch people of high risk to be infected, and finally, they will give testing options for people who might be infected. This is also a problem for big breeding farms. To stop the mass spread of disease through our breeding facilities, if you see unexplained death through the breeding facilities, inform the operators of the problem. Some other symptoms in birds, based on USDA include birds not eating, less egg production, swelling of the eyes, purple bruises all over the body, difficulty breathing, stuffy or runny noses, diarrhea, falling down more than usual, and twisting of the head and neck. To finish up this article, while the effects of Bird flu seem very drastic, great measures are being quickly taken to ensure the general public's safety, as well as the safety of our animals.

---

                                                            Sources

                                                MLA Formatting

Bethany. “H5N1 Bird Flu: Understanding the Risk - Barnstable County.” Barnstable County, 17 Jan. 2025, www.capecod.gov/2025/01/17/h5n1-bird-flu-understanding-the-risk/.

“Avian Influenza (Bird Flu) in Humans | Vermont Department of Health.” Www.healthvermont.gov, www.healthvermont.gov/disease-control/zoonotic-diseases/avian-influenza-bird-flu-humans.

CDC. “Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.” Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, U.S. Department of Health & Human Services, 2025, www.cdc.gov/. 

“H5N1 Bird Flu, or Avian Influenza, in Florida: What to Know» Emerging Pathogens Institute» University of Florida.” Ufl.edu, 2025, epi.ufl.edu/2025/05/14/h5n1-bird-flu-or-avian-influenza-in-florida-what-to-know/.  Accessed 28 Aug. 2025.

“Unprecedented”: How Bird Flu Became an Animal Pandemic.” Www.bbc.com, www.bbc.com/future/article/20240425-how-dangerous-is-bird-flu-spread-to-wildlife-and-humans. 

---

Noah Lewis is a 10th grader at the white and blue school of Poudre high school. This is his first year in Poudre Press. He is also an avid wrestler, who wrestles year round. Other hobbies he enjoys include mountain biking, collecting sports memorabilia/cards, camping, and playing video games.