Missouri Department of Conservation detects potential bird flu case in dead snow geese

WASHINGTON (dpa-AFX) – Recently, the Missouri Department of Conservation confirmed that three dead geese – two recovered in Henry County and one in Vernon County, were probably infected with bird flu.

Samples from the dead geese were sent to the University of Missouri Veterinary Medical Diagnostic Laboratory for testing and came back “non-negative” for bird flu.

The samples will now be sent to the National Veterinary Services Laboratory to check whether the virus is the highly pathogenic variant or not.

“It’s going to be about a month before we know what version of bird flu, but you know, we’re basically treating it as positive bird flu,” Deb Hudman, the department’s wildlife health program supervisor, told The Independent.

The department is also investigating similar cases of birds found in southeast Missouri and the St. Louis. Nearby states, including Kansas and Iowa, face the same situation.