Experts explain how it got into Idaho, the impact it had on farmers, and how consumers can stay safe.
BOISE, Idaho — The bird flu continues to be in the national headlines and it isn’t a new virus.
It was first identified in 1878 in Northern Italy. By 2020, a highly pathogenic strand of the virus was detected in Europe.
By 2021, that strand was found in birds in the US and Canada. The virus now isn’t only detected in geese, ducks and chickens, but more recently, there are cases reported in cats, dogs, goats, alpacas and dairy cows.
The first case detected in cattle in Idaho was at a Cassia County dairy, nearly one year ago.
35 dairies were impacted, and as of Tuesday, only one is under quarantine.
It has people asking, how did it get into Idaho, what was the impact to farmers after the quarantines, and because humans can get the virus, how …