Avian influenza, or “bird flu,” is a virus that infects domestic poultry, such as chickens, turkey, quail, and geese, and wild birds such as raptors, shorebirds and waterfowl.

Avian influenza is a serious disease concern for poultry producers and animal health officials. While influenza strains in birds, just as in people, vary considerably in severity, some influenza viruses can be devastating to domestic poultry.

The H5N1 virus has infected a small number of people across the U.S. To date, there has been no documented transmission between people in the U.S. While continuing testing of people in close contact with animals infected with HPAI indicates a low risk to the general public’s health, backyard flock owners should keep birds in outdoor coops and not bring birds that have been living outside into the home. Children and pets should be kept away from wild birds and bird droppings. Please refer to the current CDC webpage for information about humans contracting avian influenza.

If anyone in contact with poultry begins to experience flu-like symptoms, please contact 888-295-5156 (after hours) or 302-744-4990 (business hours) for a referral to a DPH clinic to obtain a flu swab. Flu-like symptoms include fever, cough, sore throat, congestion, body aches, fatigue, and sometimes diarrhea. If symptoms seem severe, including trouble breathing, chest pain or pressure, dizziness/confusion, severe muscle pain, seizure, severe weakness or unsteadiness, worsening of chronic medical conditions, or fever or cough that begin to improve and then worsen or return, please dial 911 or visit the emergency department. Let the hospital staff and providers know if you have been exposed to poultry or wild birds.

Avian influenza does not affect the food safety of poultry meat or egg products, which remain safe to eat. Consumers should be fully confident that their chicken and eggs are safe to eat if properly prepared. That means cooking poultry to an internal temperature of 165 degrees, and washing preparation surfaces, utensils, and hands – just like when your family cooks chicken every day. We can guarantee that no flock moves into the human food supply without being tested for avian influenza.

Generally, we know that avian influenza can be transmitted by wild birds or waterfowl. Our family farmers take biosecurity steps every day to keep their flocks healthy and safe. The virus can be transmitted on shoes, vehicles, or equipment, which is why we are asking everyone with poultry to take the proper precautions and use strict biosecurity protocols.

We have dealt successfully with avian influenza before. In 2004, Delaware had two farms affected with low pathogenicity avian influenza. In 2022, Delaware experienced highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) in 3 commercial farms at the beginning of 2022 and then in two backyard flocks in the early fall of that year.

Delaware has approximately 625 commercial broiler poultry farms, with up to 61 million chickens being raised in the state at any given time. Our family farms raise more than 240 million broiler chickens each year. Several thousand families depend upon poultry for work in processing and other fields. The direct impact is $5 billion, with the total economic contribution estimated at $9.2 billion (U.S. Poultry and Egg Association, 2024). We understand there will be concern about the impact on individual family farms and on the sector in general, which is why we are prepared to act quickly and decisively to control its spread and eradicate the virus if it is found in Delaware.

Our primary goal is to prevent the virus from spreading by maintaining tight controls and using effective biosecurity practices. If Delaware does have a case, we will not disclose the location or identity of the farm to prevent the disease from spreading to other farms with poultry. We do not want to have people visiting or driving by that location and potentially tracking the avian influenza virus to another location and spreading it even wider.

Low Pathogenicity Avian Influenza (LPAI): Most AI strains are classified as low pathogenicity and cause few clinical signs in infected birds. LPAI generally does not pose a significant health threat to humans; however, LPAI is monitored because two strains of LPAI – the H5 and H7 strains – can mutate into highly pathogenic forms. There are few clinical signs, but they include mild respiratory disease (coughing and sneezing) and decreased egg production.

High Pathogenicity Avian Influenza (HPAI): This is a more pathogenic type of avian influenza that is frequently fatal to birds and easily transmissible between susceptible species. Clinical signs include:

• Sudden death without clinical signs
• Lack of energy and appetite
• Decreased egg production
• Soft-shelled or misshapen eggs
• Swelling of the head, eyelids, comb, wattles, and hocks
• Purple discoloration of the wattles, combs, and legs
• Nasal discharge
• Coughing, sneezing
• Lack of coordination
• Diarrhea

For images of avian influenza clinical signs, visit the Cornell University College of Veterinary Medicine.

The virus is shed in fecal droppings, saliva, and nasal discharge of some avian wildlife species and infected domestic poultry.

Symptoms of avian influenza in poultry include:

• Sudden death without other clinical signs
• Lack of energy and appetite
• Swelling of the heat, eyelids, comb, wattles and hocks
• Purple discoloration of the wattles, combs and legs
• Nasal discharge
• Coughing or sneezing
• Lack of coordination
• Diarrhea
• Decreased egg production; soft-shelled or misshapen eggs
• Torticollis / twisted neck

Commercial poultry producers should follow the protocol of notifying the company they grow for when they notice signs of disease.

Delaware backyard flock owners who notice any of the signs of HPAI in their flock should email the Delaware Poultry Health Hotline at poultry.health@delaware.gov or call 302-698-4507 and provide your contact information, size of flock, location, and concerns. Do not take dead or sick birds to a lab to be tested to move them off-site.

Avian Influenza: A Typical First 72 Hours

Basic biosecurity steps include:

• Limit, monitor, and record any movement of people, vehicles, or animals on or off your farm.
• Permit only essential workers and vehicles to enter the farm to limit the chances of bringing the virus from an outside source.
• Avoid visiting other poultry farms.
• Disinfect equipment, vehicles, footwear, and other items that come in contact with flocks.
• Keep your flock away from wild or migratory birds, especially waterfowl.
• Isolate any ill animals and contact your veterinarian.
  

Surveillance and Testing
The Delaware Department of Agriculture with the help of the University of Delaware laboratory system performs active surveillance and testing of birds for avian influenza within the state every single day. Surveillance is conducted at commercial poultry operations, exhibition and backyard flocks, and at livestock and poultry auctions. Testing for AI is performed in order to allow for early detection and elimination of the virus if it is found.

If you have sick or dead birds, call 302-698-4507 or 800-282-8685 (Delaware only). The staff at the Delaware Department of Agriculture can make sure your birds get tested so you know why they are sick.

Promoting Biosecurity
The Department of Agriculture is actively promoting biosecurity through education and outreach to poultry owners in the state. Register your flock by completing the Poultry Registration Form (English) or Poultry Registration Form (Spanish) if you wish to receive mailings from the Delaware Department of Agriculture about disease alerts. See links below for biosecurity that you can use on your farm.

If you are a backyard flock owner and have not registered your flock, complete the Poultry Registration Form (English) or Poultry Registration Form (Spanish)

Domestic Birds:
Sick or dead domestic birds, including backyard flocks and commercial poultry, should be reported to the Delaware Department of Agriculture’s Poultry and Animal Health Section. Commercial poultry producers should follow the protocol of notifying the company they grow for when they notice signs of disease, who will notify DDA. Delaware backyard flock owners who notice any of the signs of HPAI in their flock should email the Delaware Poultry Health Hotline at poultry.health@delaware.gov or call 302-698-4507 and provide your contact information, size of flock, location, and concerns. Do not take dead or sick birds to a lab to be tested to move them off-site, 302-698-4507 or 800-282-8685 (Delaware only).

Wild Birds:
Delawareans are reminded not to touch or handle injured, sick, or dead birds and to use the DNREC Division of Fish and Wildlife’s Sick and Dead Wildlife Reporting Form should they encounter dead or sick birds. Wild birds should not be reported to the Delaware Poultry Health Hotline, as that reporting hotline is reserved for backyard flocks and farms with poultry.

There are vaccines available, but any use of these products must be approved by state and federal agencies.

Every commercial flock in Delaware is tested for avian influenza before it moves into the human food supply. Testing is done through collaboration with the University of Delaware’s Laboratory System. Samples that are found to be non-negative at the University of Delaware Laboratory are sent to the National Veterinary Services Laboratory in Ames, Iowa for confirmation.

A control area will be established around an affected farm; there will be little impact to non-farmers who live in the area. Movement of poultry and supply trucks (e.g., feed, hatchery trucks, fuel deliveries) to or from farms will be restricted and subject to permitting. Flocks in the control area will undergo additional testing, carry out biosecurity checklists, and have state-issued permits to move birds.

Because bird flu can be very deadly in poultry, all bird flocks on an affected farm are likely to be depopulated under federal and state policy to prevent the avian influenza virus from spreading. This is an unfortunate but necessary measure when we are dealing with catastrophic diseases like HPAI. This process is carried out using approved veterinary protocols. All methods are carried out with guidance from USDA, State animal health officials, and poultry veterinarians.

After the flocks are depopulated, the carcasses will be composted. For broiler chickens, they will be composted in the poultry house itself. Composting is the method used for normal poultry mortality, though on a smaller scale. Like any composting, this process will raise the heat to 130 degrees Fahrenheit for sufficient time to kill the virus. Once the compost has been sufficiently heated, it can be removed from the house and disposed of in a variety of ways. One common way may be to be spread on farm fields if regulations permit. There should be no concern that the compost will carry the virus. The poultry houses then undergo an extensive and lengthy cleaning, decontamination, and testing process. Only when they are declared virus-free and have obtained permission from USDA and state animal health officials will new birds be permitted back in.

There are about 3,000 backyard flocks registered in Delaware as required by state law. Anyone with one or more chickens or other poultry species must be registered with the Department of Agriculture. The database was instituted about a decade ago; we work to keep it updated and notify new poultry owners as soon as we are aware of them.

Register your flock by completing the Poultry Registration Form (English) or Poultry Registration Form (Spanish)

• Website: Information on Avian Influenza (CDC)
• For Employers: Guidance for Protecting Employees Against Avian Flu (OSHA)

• Brochure: Proteja a sus aves de la influenza aviar (USDA APHIS)
• Video: Medidas Sencillas Para Mantener Saludables a Sus Aves de Corral
• Website: Informacion sobre la influenza aviar (CDC)