HARRISBURG, Pa (Erie News Now) – The Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture has confirmed the state’s first positive case of bird flu in domestic poultry, according to a news release Saturday.
Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza (HPAI) was found in a flock of commercial layer chickens on a Lancaster County poultry farm.
The positive samples were taken from a flock in East Donegal Township and tested at the Pennsylvania Veterinary Laboratory. The finding was confirmed by the National Veterinary Services Laboratory in Ames, Iowa. The department has quarantined the farm and all commercial poultry facilities within a 10-kilometer radius of the infected flock.
HPAI is highly infectious ?and can be fatal to domestic birds (chickens, ducks, geese, quail, pheasants, guinea fowl and turkeys).
There is no risk to the public, and poultry and eggs are safe to eat if cooked properly, according to the state’s agriculture department.
No human cases of bird flu have been detected in the United States, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
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