Genomic analysis suggests that the outbreak probably began in December or January, but a shortage of data is hampering efforts to pin down the source.

A strain of highly pathogenic avian influenza has been silently spreading in US cattle for months, according to preliminary analysis of genomic data. The outbreak is likely to have begun when the virus jumped from an infected bird into a cow, probably around late December or early January. This implies a protracted, undetected spread of the virus — suggesting that more cattle across the United States, and even in neighbouring regions, could have been infected with avian influenza than currently reported.

  • BruceTwarzen
    14•7 months ago

    Guys the risk is super low, don’t stop the cow torture industry okay? It’s the most important thing right now.

    • @Fedizen
      6•7 months ago

      this was my concern, too. Especially after reading about how the WHO didn’t want to say covid was airborne because it would be hard to deal with or something so they stuck to a completely unsupported droplet theory to basically protect businesses from having to provide better ventilation

    • @meliaesc
      -1•7 months ago

      If the risk is high, they simply kill all the cows. That’s the reason eggs were so expensive a couple years ago.

      • LustyArgonianEnglish
        1•7 months ago

        What will we eat if we kill all the cows and chickens? That’s the majority of American’s protein sources. And there’s no way pigs aren’t getting infected as well. Oceans are already overfished. Majority of the country will not be able to convert easily to veganism and still get their nutrients.