Joining me on “Talking Animals” to discuss bird flu and the Avian Flu Resource Center–an online portal Cornell recently launched, designed to provide timely and accurate information about bird flu, amidst ongoing rumors and misinformation—Travis describes the current strain, and why it’s become so nefarious.
As part of that description, he outlines how the current flu–also known as Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza, or HPAI—is transmitted, and how it’s so deadly, and contagious, that huge flocks of poultry have had to be euthanized. Meaning that, since the current strain reached the U.S. in 2022, some 150 million birds have been destroyed.
Travis mentions that this iteration of bird flu has crossed species to some mammals, including domestic cats—particularly farm cats who have ready access to infected birds and raw milk. Some of those exposed cats have become so sick that they died, Travis says. Thus far, this flu does not appear to infect dogs.
Asked about the genesis of the Avian Flu Resource Center—including who first proposed the concept, how the notion took hold and evolved—Travis sheepishly responded that “unfortunately,” the idea was primarily his. When I inquired why “unfortunately,” Travis explained that creating the
Avian Flu Resource Center was an enormous undertaking, as is regularly updating it to reflect new flu outbreaks and other relevant recent developments. But seemed like the right thing for them to do, as a noted Public Health entity.
There was a segment of the conversation devoted to the topic of the moment—eggs—with a heightened emphasis from both Travis and a recent New York Times piece on the importance of thoroughly cooking any eggs to be consumed, especially against the backdrop of this current bird flu episode.
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