Highly pathogenic bird flu is transmitted to backyard and commercial poultry by exposure to infected wild birds or their feces, or infection by other infected poultry.

Backyard flock owners should take precautions to minimize exposure of their birds to bird flu, and use personal protective gear like gloves, safety glasses, and a mask when cleaning coops or collecting eggs. Raw egg that is not pasteurized could carry bird flu. Cooking the egg so it is not runny and washing hands well after collecting or handling unpasteurized flocks can help reduce risk. More information can be found here.

Highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) is a more severe form of bird flu that is often fatal for birds. A lower pathogenic form of the virus (LPAI) causes mild or unnoticeable symptoms in birds. The difference between the two types is the virus's ability to produce disease. HPAI was the type detected in cattle.

Cats are very susceptible to bird flu, and the virus is often deadly for cats. Dogs can also get the virus, but they appear to be more resilient to it.

Most cats get bird flu from contaminated raw pet food or unpasteurized milk. It is also possible for outdoor cats to get sick from contact with wild birds. Cat owners should keep their cats indoors, and avoid raw pet food products.

High heat is necessary to kill the virus. Freeze dried or frozen raw cat food is not safe for cats because it is not heated and could still have the live virus. The American Veterinary Medical Association advises against feeding cats raw food.

In 2016, a veterinarian in New York City got sick with bird flu from a cat. This was the last reported case of a person getting bird flu after being exposed to several sick cats.

More information on how to protect your pets from bird flu can be found on the American Veterinary Association's website.

We are still waiting for the release of the full report to help determine how likely it is for people to get bird flu from cats or vice versa.

Variants included in the 2024/2025 flu vaccine are influenza A(H1N1) virus, an influenza A(H3N2) virus, and an influenza B/Victoria virus.

We won’t know the true effectiveness of the flu vaccine this year until after the flu season is over, but based on data from the Southern Hemisphere it is likely around 35% effective, which is lower than last year’s 42% but still close to the typical range of 40% to 60% effectiveness.

There are several factors that determine how many people get sick with the flu each year including which strain of the vaccine is dominant and how many people get vaccinated.

For the first year since the COVID pandemic began, the number of deaths from seasonal influenza is higher than the number of deaths from COVID.

Even if you still get sick after getting the flu vaccine, being vaccinated reduces your risk of being hospitalized or getting severe illness.

Even if you already got sick with the flu this season without being vaccinated, you could still get sick with a different strain than the one you already had. It is not too late to get the flu vaccine to reduce your risk of serious illness.

We will not know the effectiveness of this year’s flu vaccine in the U.S. until the flu season is over and public health officials are able to examine the data.

Symptoms of TB include feelings of sickness, weight loss, night sweats, and fever. It spreads from person to person through the air, not by saliva nor germs on hands and surfaces. 

It is important to get treatment for active TB infections since the disease can be fatal if left untreated, although this is very rare in the U.S.

Treatment is long and includes taking a combination of medications for 6-12 months for adults and 4-9 months in children. Side effects of these medications can be hard for some people to tolerate, but it is important to complete the entire treatment process to prevent TB from returning or becoming resistant to the medications.

Latent TB means the germs are in someone's body, but they are not experiencing symptoms because the infection is not active. This kind of TB cannot be spread from person to person. People with latent TB are often prescribed medications to help prevent an active infection in the future.

There is not a vaccine for TB in the U.S.; it does exist in other parts of the world but is only partially effective. The best way to prevent the spread of TB is to avoid being around sick people and ensuring people who have TB receive treatment. An N95 or KN95 mask can help prevent inhaling the germs.

Nebraska Department of health continues to monitor the TB outbreak and will provide updates as they become available.