This alert is no longer active, but here for reference. Animals still need your help.

Bird flu is surging in dairy cows across the country. Despite horrific neglect of animals and warnings of a potential pandemic, testing for bird flu is not mandatory for dairy operators, except in Colorado. Urge Congress and the U.S. Department of Agriculture to enforce mandatory bulk milk testing of dairy cows in every state for bird flu, which poses a grave threat to millions of humans and animals globally.

The USDA has confirmed that as of October 9, 2024, bird flu, otherwise known as Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza, H5N1, is in 296 dairy herds across 14 states and counting, which just increased to 96 in California, the top dairy-producing state. Despite warnings from experts of a pandemic worse than COVID-19, dairy operators are not required to test for H5N1. Only Colorado has mandated bulk milk tank testing to control the virus's spread. Animal agribusiness prioritizes profits over the animals, worker safety, and public health.

The first thing to know about the dairy industry is the sexual violation, suffering, and slaughter it inflicts on innocent, feeling, defenseless animals.
 

The cruelty of the dairy industry is reason enough to end it. Yet now with 17 human cases of H5N1 in the U.S. — 13 of them are poultry and dairy workers — dairy ranchers are resisting testing to avoid it affecting their business. The majority of farm workers are immigrants, who commonly fear retaliation and job loss if they speak up or call in sick. Even legally documented dairy workers face pressure to remain silent due to isolation and dependence on their employers, indicating the virus is far more widespread than reported.

Many veterinarians like Dr. Crystal Heath, Co-Founder of Our Honor, a veterinary advocacy organization, condemn the industry's intimidation tactics that silence concerns about animal welfare, public health threats, and infectious disease risks. In early September, the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) reported a human H5N1 case with no animal contact, raising concerns of possible human-to-human transmission and its potential to mix with seasonal flu, triggering a pandemic. Another ominous sign is that over half of the cats at a Texas dairy farm died after exposure to the virus.

In an alarming statement in July, former CDC Director Robert Redfield warned “It's not a question of if, but when, we'll have a bird flu pandemic” and that it could kill 25 to 50% of those infected.

The USDA has chosen to spend over $1 billion of taxpayer money on industry bailouts for killing infected animals using horrific “ventilation shutdown,” suffocating and roasting them alive, which has already killed approximately 100 million “poultry” birds, and 250,000 pigs in 2020. Will dairy cows be next? Then millions more turkeys during the holidays?

Instead of continuing to breed, confine, torment, and kill 9 billion animals annually - the very conditions that create and spread zoonotic diseases - and spending millions to create an H5N1 vaccine to pump into them, Congress and the USDA must redirect funding from an animal-based to an animal-free, plant-based food system. Whether we purchase their products or not, our tax dollars pay 100% to bail these industries out. They must be held accountable for their cruel and destructive practices that harm and kill animals while putting public health at extreme risk.

Tell Congress and the USDA to make bulk milk tank testing mandatory in all states, and enforce compliance through fines before H5N1 escalates into a pandemic. Expose the dairy industry, and all animal agribusiness, for what it is - a violent abomination to animals and a dire threat to humans, the environment, and the planet.

Letter to Decision Maker(s) for reference:

Subject: Mandate Nationwide Bulk Milk Testing of Bird Flu to Prevent a Pandemic

As someone concerned with animal welfare and public health, I urge you to implement mandatory nationwide bulk milk tank testing for the Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza (HPAI), or H5N1 virus, in the dairy industry.

The highly pathogenic virus has spread to 296 dairy herds across 14 states yet despite experts warning that a bird flu pandemic could be worse than COVID-19, dairy operators are not required to test for it.

At the end of October, states are invited to submit double-blinded samples of raw milk as part of a six-week study to better understand HPAI, but involvement is voluntary and there will be no traceback or trace forward. While the data may provide some insight into the prevalence of HPAI, there will be no more answers about where it is or protection for consumers and more needs to be done — especially considering that 30 states still allow the sale of raw milk.

As of now, not enough dairy farmers are testing, even with financial incentives offered by the USDA.

The bottom line is that animal agribusinesses create and spread zoonotic diseases like H5N1. Now they're being bailed out with over $1 billion of our taxpayer money to use horrific mass-killing methods like “ventilation shutdown” on the animals. 
Stop prioritizing profits for the dairy, meat, and egg industries over public health and the well-being of animals. Leading nutrition organizations have affirmed that well-planned, plant-based diets are healthy for all stages of life. It's time to shift to a slaughter-free, plant-based food system.

Please enforce mandatory nationwide bulk milk tank testing in dairy herds to prevent H5N1 from escalating into a pandemic. Thank you for your attention on this critical issue.

Sincerely,

Signed

This alert is no longer active, but here for reference. Animals still need your help.