Michigan will offer dairies with H5N1 up to $28,000 to work with federal and state government agencies to investigate how the virus got onto their operations, Michigan Department of Agriculture and Rural Development Director Tim Boring said. Federal and state officials are researching several aspects of how H5N1 spreads, including the possibility of respiratory transmission among animals and prior infection of farm workers, in an attempt to curb further outbreaks among animals and humans.
Michigan’s ag department will provide the grant money for to up to 20 farms from its emergency response funds, Boring said. The goal is to help with losses associated with sick animals and to cover the costs of farmers and their staff working with scientists, he added.
Farmers would need to work with the state agriculture department and USDA’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service’s Veterinary Services (APHIS) to complete epidemiological investigations on their farms.
