The following message was distributed by the Colorado State Veterinarian’s Office on September 26, 2023.
Colorado State Veterinarian Dr. Maggie Baldwin released the last premises quarantine in Colorado enacted as a result of the highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) outbreak. With the release of the final HPAI quarantine, Colorado has achieved HPAI-free status as designated by the World Organization for Animal Health (WOAH).
Since April 2022, Colorado has experienced the largest foreign animal disease outbreak in state’s history with the loss of more than 6.2 million domestic poultry due to HPAI. This response across the state has taken tremendous collaboration and coordination with local, state, federal, and industry partners.
“We are encouraged that we have reached the stage in this devastating outbreak that we have finally released the last premises from quarantine,” said Colorado State Veterinarian Dr. Maggie Baldwin. “The efforts of our response partners and the poultry industry made this an incredibly successful response in Colorado. We believe increased biosecurity in commercial poultry operations and backyard flocks helped stem the transmission of the virus.”
No commercial cases of HPAI have been detected in Colorado since December 20, 2022 and no backyard cases have been confirmed since April 24, 2023. In the United States, there has not been a case of HPAI in commercial poultry since April 19, 2023 or in backyard poultry since May 18, 2023, according to the US Department of Agriculture. However, there have been more recent detections at live bird markets and Dr. Baldwin continues to encourage commercial and backyard poultry owners to continue practicing stringent biosecurity measures.
“While we have not seen many recent detections in domestic poultry, the virus is still circulating at low levels in the wild bird population. Additional surveillance in the coming weeks will inform what impacts we may see during the fall migration,” said Dr. Baldwin.
The USDA’s Defend the Flock program has resources for bird owners, including sample biosecurity plans, videos, and tips on how to keep a healthy flock.
Additionally, the Colorado Department of Agriculture has tips on biosecurity, informational webinars, a form to report any sick birds, and more information about HPAI on the Avian Influenza page at ag.colorado.gov/hpai.
