Farm Biosecurity and Disease Outbreak Response Plans

Aug 07, 2025

On March 29, 2024, Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza (HPAI) was first confirmed on a Michigan dairy farm. Since then, HPAI has been confirmed in 28 other dairy herds across the state. Policies, laws and testing requirements have changed over the past year but a few things remain the same:

A farm biosecurity plan cannot guarantee prevention but it is a critical piece of risk reduction
Disease outbreak response plans help farmers proactively approach new or worsening outbreaks
MSU Extension has many resources to assist dairy producers

HPAI is a viral infection affecting poultry and dairy herds. Affected cattle display several clinical signs including reduced feed intake and rumen motility, decreased milk production, thicker concentrated colostrum-like milk that can be discolored, abnormal or loose manure and fever. Although few cattle die from HPAI infections, the impact of an outbreak on a dairy farm is challenging. An analysis of an HPAI outbreak on a Michigan farm led by Zelmar Rodriguez and colleagues estimated the net cost of the outbreak was $504 per affected cow or $158 per cow in the herd.

Source : msu.edu

Video: 2026 T.K. Cheung Lecture in Animal Science - Dan Weary

T.K. Cheung Lecture in Animal Science: "Using science to assess and improve the welfare of dairy cattle"

Dan Weary is a Professor at the University of British Columbia. Dan did his BSc and MSc at McGill and Doctorate at Oxford before co-founding UBC’s Animal Welfare Program where he now co-directs this active research group. His research focuses on understanding the perspectives of animals and applying these insights to develop methods of assessing animal welfare and improving the lives of animals. His work has helped drive changes in practices (including the adoption of higher milk rations for calves and pain management for disbudding) and housing methods (including the adoption of social housing for pre-weaned calves). He also studies cow comfort and lameness, social interactions among cows, and interactions between cows, human handlers and technologies like automated millking systems that are increasingly used on farms. His presentation will outline key questions in cattle welfare, highlight recent UBC research addressing them, and showcase innovative methods for improving the lives of cattle and their caretakers.