Another round of Iowa bird flu cases hit 32,300 birds

Bird flu has hit four more poultry operations in Iowa with about 32,300 birds, the Iowa Department of Agriculture said Friday: A north-central commercial chicken breeding facility and three northwest game bird farms.

Highly pathogenic avian influenza was detected at a Hamilton County breeding chicken facility with 15,000 birds. The three Clay County game bird farms that had 17,331 ducks and backyard birds. One farm had 7,340 ducks and 21 backyard birds of mixed species; the second farm had 1,700 ducks; and the third, 8,270 ducks.

The birds were destroyed to prevent the spread of the deadly disease, which is carried by wild birds on their fall migration.