The Minnesota Board of Animal Health (MBOAH) is warning farmers, veterinarians and animal health professionals to beware of misinformation that might be spreading about animal diseases.
In the MBOAH’s Animal Bytes e-newsletter, the board cautioned: “Unfortunately, both new and existing risks to animal health are growing. The way we get information today through various social media and other digital channels often makes it hard to tell what’s true and what’s not.”
MBOH stated that examples of such misinformation include anti vaccine falsehoods, rumors about disease detections without confirmed test results, and speculation on potential sources of infection.
“False claims can seriously impact how veterinarians, farmers, and animal health officials respond to a disease. Domestically there were examples of misinformation last spring when H5N1 was first detected in cattle in Texas and Kansas,” MBOAH stated.
“To tackle these challenges, we need to work together to share what we know and focus on trusted partners for clear and accurate information. Collaborating with experts and staying informed helps create effective responses to false information.”
The Minnesota board mentioned that the World Organisation for Animal Health (WOAH) has similar concerns about animal disease misinformation, and has developed guidelines to help manage misinformation during animal health emergencies.
Continued H5N1 vigilance urged
Also in its newsletter, MBOAH reminded poultry producers that millions of birds are crossing Minnesota every night as they make their seasonal migrations, and Increased bird traffic has been shown to increase the risk for spread of diseases like H5N1 highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) from wild birds to poultry.
The last instance of HPAI in a commercial poultry flock in the United States was confirmed on July 19 in Weld County, Colorado, while the last instance in Minnesota was July 9, according to the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS).
To learn more about HPAI cases in commercial poultry flocks in the United States and Canada, see an interactive map on WATTPoultry.com.
Read our ongoing coverage of the global avian influenza outbreak.
