Now, Somebody In Texas Done Got Bird Flu From a Cow

We reported last week that some cows in the Texas Panhandle are sick with a strain of Avian Influenza…better known as bird flu.

On March 24, Texas Ag Commissioner Sid Miller said steps were being taken and consumers didn’t need to worry.

Now, somebody in Texas has gotten bird flu from a cow.  According to a report in the Dallas Morning News the infected patient had direct exposure to dairy cattle.

 The Texas Department of State Health Services reported that this is just the second human case of the illness in the nation, but it’s the first linked to exposure to cattle. The Texas patient was dested by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention over the weekend and was treated with the antiviral medication oseltamivir.

State officials are saying the risk to the general public remains low and that cattle infections “do not present a concern for the commercial milk supply”. Dairies are required to destroy any milk from any of the sick cows.

Multiple U.S. agencies said on Friday that this is the first time bird flu has spread to cattle.

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The infected cows have been found across several states, including Texas, Michigan, New Mexico and Idaho.  Milk samples from Kansas and Texas were found to be contaminated from the disease.

Ag Commissioner Sid Miller also said the cows will recover and there will be no supply shortages over the tainted milk.

Miller, as well as multiple agencies, remind Texans to drink only pasteurized milk.

“No contaminated milk is known to have entered the food chain”, Commissioner Miller said. “It’s all been dumped. In the rare event that some affected milk enters the food chain, the pasteurization process will kill the virus.”

Some people swear by “raw milk” tasting better and having health advantages. It might have some bird flu in it now (but probably not).