Nearly two dozen cases of bird flu found at poultry and dairy farms in Riverside County​on February 1, 2025 at 6:39 am

RIVERSIDE, Calif. (KABC) — The Centers for Disease Control has reported an increased number of bird flu cases across the nation, with some of the biggest outbreaks reported in Riverside County.

According to the CDC website, there have been a total of 67 reported exposures of bird flu across the nation, with 38 of those cases in California.

The Riverside University Health System has reported 23 cases of bird flu found at various poultry and dairy farms across Riverside County.

While there have been 67 reported human cases of bird flu found across the country, Dr. Geoffrey Leung, the Riverside County public health officer, said there have been no human cases reported in the county so far.

“Bird flu is an influenza type virus that traditionally affects animals, birds and in this case more recently cattle or dairy cows,” Leung said. “Historically, we would rarely see bird flu in humans, but more recently we’ve seen sort of an outbreak of bird flu in dairy farms and poultry farms.”

Leung said there’s no reason for panic but describes the number of reported cases countywide as “unusual.”

“The risk to the general public is very low,” Leung said. “Bird flu is not adapted to spread from person to person, but for people who work very closely with certain types of high-risk animals, or theoretically if they’re handling animal products that might not be cooked or pasteurized, they may have a risk either by nose or by mouth to have something transmitted.”

Leung said the public can take action to prevent the spread of bird flu by practicing rigorous handwashing and avoiding raw milk or dairy products. When consuming meat or eggs, they should be cooked completely.

“We have been fortunate in the United States, in that (with) human cases, most of them have been mild,” Leung said. “They might include typical respiratory symptoms, or red eyes, maybe even fever, but we do recommend that anyone who thinks they might be sick from bird flu that you contact your regular doctor.”