Buena Vista County reports its 4th outbreak of contagious bird flu

Northwest Iowa’s Buena Vista County has recorded another case of the highly contagious bird flu — its fourth outbreak this year, Iowa agriculture officials announced Wednesday.

Officials said it struck a commercial turkey flock. Of the three earlier outbreaks in the county, two also struck commercial turkey flocks and one hit a commercial layer chicken flock.

The latest case makes 10 outbreaks recorded this year — and all this month — to strike in Iowa. Besides the Buena Vista County’s cases, outbreaks were reported in Franklin, Guthrie, Hamilton, Pottawattamie, Taylor and Warren counties. Two of those cases — in Pottawattamie and Warren counties — were in backyard flocks and not commercial flocks.

Earlier this week, Iowa Agricultural Secretary Mike Naig told reporters “it is certainly a time of heightened alert” among poultry producers. He said there is a strong indication the virus is being carried by wild birds, which is why it’s important to separate wild birds from domestic birds.

More than 8 million birds in the state have been killed because of the virus.