Flies, ‘Milk Snatching’ Among H5N1 Transmission Contributors in Dairy Cattle

Jul 22, 2025

By Lisa Schnirring

Though H5N1 avian flu outbreaks in dairy cattle and commercial poultry are at low levels in the United States, scientists continue to sort out how the virus spreads on farms, and two new pieces of information this week shed more light on potential spread in dairy cattle: contamination from house flies and “milk snatching”.

Over the last 30 days, the US Department of Agriculture (USDA) has reported only one detection in poultry, a game bird farm in Pennsylvania, and two detections in dairy cattle, which involved herds from California and Arizona.

The decline in US detections appears to be part of a largely seasonal drop in cases. A new monthly update from the World Organization for Animal Health (WOAH), which covers activity in June, said though poultry outbreaks have decreased, with only 15 reported for the month, new outbreaks in wild birds are on the rise, especially in Europe.

In the early days of H5N1 outbreaks in dairy cattle, movement of infected cattle and contaminated equipment were thought to play major roles in the spread of the virus. However, outbreaks continued to occur, despite curbs on moving dairy cows among states and stepped-up biosecurity measures on farms, raising ongoing questions and intense scientific investigations into other contributing factors.

Source : umn.edu

Video: Evolution of Beef Cattle Farming

The Clear Conversations podcast took to the road for a special episode recorded in Nashville during CattleCon, bringing listeners straight into the heart of the cattle industry. Host Tracy Sellers welcomed rancher Steve Wooten of Beatty Canyon Ranch in Colorado for a wide-ranging discussion that blended family history and sustainability, particularly as it relates to the future of beef production.

Sustainability emerged as a central theme of the conversation, a word that Wooten acknowledges can mean very different things depending on who you ask. For him, sustainability starts with the soil. Healthy soil produces healthy grass, which supports efficient cattle capable of producing year after year with minimal external inputs. It’s an approach that equally considers vegetation, animal efficiency, and long-term profitability.

That philosophy aligned naturally with Wooten’s involvement in the U.S. Roundtable for Sustainable Beef, where he served as a representative for the Colorado Cattlemen’s Association. The roundtable brings together the entire beef supply chain—from producers to retailers—along with universities, NGOs, and allied industries. Its goal is not regulation, Wooten emphasized, but collaboration, shared learning, and continuous improvement.