An earlier reported case of highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) in New Castle County, Delaware, was in a commercial layer operation that involved 1,146,937 chickens, according to a World Organisation for Animal Health (OIE) report
On February 23, the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) Plant and Animal Health Inspection Service (APHIS) and the Delaware Department of Agriculture (DDA) reported that HPAI was confirmed in a commercial poultry flock in New Castle County, but APHIS did not offer specifics on the type of operation, and DDA only identified it as an operation with chickens.
APHIS notified OIE of the outbreak, and the latest update on the situation on the OIE website revealed the size and type of commercial flock.
The OIE report also noted that the birds in the flock had exhibited clinical signs including nasal discharge, diarrhea, cyanotic to necrotic combs, cloacal prolapse and increased mortalities.
The premises has been quarantined and depopulation procedures are being carried out.
To date, that has been Delaware’s only case of HPAI in commercial poultry.
OIE figures show that with the Delaware case, 1,568,411 commercial poultry birds have been affected by HPAI in 2022. That number takes the tally of the Delaware flock; two turkey flocks in Dubois County, Indiana; two turkey flocks in Greene County, Indiana; one turkey flock in Webster County, Kentucky; and one layer flock in Fulton County, Kentucky.
A third turkey flock in Dubois County has been classified as presumed-positive by the Indiana State Board of Animal Health (BOAH) but that case has not yet been confirmed by the USDA.
In addition to the confirmed cases in the United States, there has also been a confirmed case of HPAI in Nova Scotia, Canada. In that case, 11,800 commercial turkeys were affected.
View our continuing coverage of the global avian influenza situation.
