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KY Bans Bird Sales Due to IN Avian Flu Outbreak

Matt Markgraf, WKMS

Kentucky officials have re-enacted a state-wide ban on bird sales and movement in response to an avian flu outbreak in southern Indiana.  State Veterinarian Robert Stout says he took the step out of an abundance of caution.  

He says poultry is the Commonwealth’s leading agricultural commodity, generating an estimated $1.28 billion in 2014.  The restrictions include a sales ban on out-of-state birds at stockyards, flea markets, and swap meets.  Birds entering Kentucky for sale are restricted to those certified by the National Poultry Improvement Plan as free of H5 or H7 viruses.

Stout asks anyone who sees signs of disease in birds, or unexpected deaths, to contact the Office of the State Veterinarian at (502) 573-0282 or the USDA's toll-free number at 1-866-536-7593.  You can find information about the ban here, and more information about biosecurity tips and avian flu information here.

Todd Hatton hails from Paducah, Kentucky, where he got into radio under the auspices of the late, great John Stewart of WKYX while a student at Paducah Community College. He also worked at WKMS in the reel-to-reel tape days of the early 1990s before running off first to San Francisco, then Orlando in search of something to do when he grew up. He received his MFA in Creative Writing at Murray State University. He vigorously resists adulthood and watches his wife, Angela Hatton, save the world one plastic bottle at a time.
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