Dairy cattle moving between states must be tested for the bird flu virus, U.S. agriculture officials said Wednesday as they try to track and control the growing outbreak.
The federal order was announced one day after health officials said they had detected inactivated remnants of the virus, known as Type A H5N1, in samples taken from milk during processing and from store shelves. They stressed that such remnants pose no known risk to people or the milk supply.
“The risk to humans remains low,” said Dawn O'Connell of the federal Administration for Strategic Preparedness and Response.
The new order, which goes into effect Monday, requires every lactating cow to be tested and post a negative result before moving to a new state. It will help the agency understand how the virus is spreading, said Michael Watson, an administrator with the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service.
“We believe we can do tens of thousands of tests a day,” he told reporters.
Until now, testing had been done voluntarily and only in cows with symptoms.
Avian influenza was first detected in dairy cows in March and has been found in nearly three dozen herds in eight states, according to USDA.
It's an escalation of an ongoing outbreak of highly pathogenic avian influenza spread by wild birds. Since the start of the outbreak, more than 90 million birds in U.S. commercial flocks have either died from the virus or been killed to try to prevent spread.
Two people in the U.S. — both farmworkers — have been infected with bird flu since the outbreak began. Health officials said 23 people have been tested for bird flu to date and 44 people exposed to infected animals are being monitored.
Officials said that samples from a cow in Kansas showed that the virus could be adapting to more animals and they detected H5N1 virus in the lung tissue of a dairy cow that had been culled and sent to slaughter.
So far, officials with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention have seen no signs that the virus is changing to be more transmissible to people.
The Associated Press Health and Science Department receives support from the Howard Hughes Medical Institute’s Science and Educational Media Group. The AP is solely responsible for all content.
FILE - Cows are seen at a dairy in California, Nov. 23, 2016. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration said Tuesday, April 23, 2024, that samples of pasteurized milk had tested positive for remnants of the bird flu virus that has infected dairy cows. (AP Photo/Rich Pedroncelli, File)
DALLAS (AP) — Radek Faksa broke a tie in his return to the Dallas lineup, 20-year-old Wyatt Johnston scored in another Game 7 and the Stars beat the defending Stanley Cup champion Vegas Golden Knights 2-1 on Sunday night to wrap up the first-round series.
After being out with an undisclosed injury since leaving the bench late in Game 2, Faksa scored 44 seconds into the third period with a backhander from the circle to the left of goalie Adin Hill.
Dallas goalie Jake Oettinger had 21 saves in his second Game 7 victory. He also had the Stars' only penalty, though they killed that off after he was called for tripping Ivan Barbashev in front of the net midway through the third.
“The last period was a clinic. Just so proud of the guys of how we responded,” Oettinger said. "It’s a long playoffs and you’re going to need different guys to step up at different times. A lot of hockey left so hopefully a lot more heroes. It’s going to be a run ride.”
The Stars, the No. 1 seed in the West, move on to play well-rested Colorado in the second round. Game 1 is in Dallas on Tuesday night, a week after the Avalanche wrapped up their series against Winnipeg with a Game 5 victory.
Brett Howden scored for Vegas, which couldn’t pull off another series winner in Dallas, where last year the Knights wrapped up the Western Conference Final with a win in Game 6. Hill had 22 saves in his third game of this series after Logan Thompson started the first four.
The visitor won the first four games in this series until the home teams held serve the last three games.
Dallas has won Game 7s in each of its first two postseasons for coach Pete DeBoer, who is now 8-0 in his career in such games with four different teams. That includes the Knights’ only Game 7 wins in 2020 and 2021 when he was their coach.
Johnston scored his series-high fourth goal on a wrister from the top of the slot with 5:26 left in the first period after picking off a clearing pass by Shea Theodore that his teammate, Tomas Hertl, missed when taking a twisting swipe at it.
A day after his 20th birthday last year, Johnston became the youngest player in NHL history with a game-clinching goal in a Game 7. He gathered a puck that ricocheted off the back boards in the third period of the Stars' 2-1 win over Seattle in that second-round series.
The goal Sunday against came in quick succession after Vegas had two scoring chances. Oettinger made a tough save to deny Jack Eichel and Jonathan Marchessault then shot the rebound off the left post, and got a hit on Johnston before the Dallas youngster skated to the other end and scored about 10 seconds later.
Vegas, which returned 22 of its 27 players from the Stanley Cup-winning roster, tied it in the second period when Michael Amadio made a crossing pass to Howden, who poked the puck into the open left side of the net behind Oettinger.
The only coach other than DeBoer to win eight Game 7s is Darryl Sutter, who was 8-3 in such games over 182 playoff games over 15 postseasons with four teams.
The Knights are 2-2 in Game 7s. DeBoer was also the opposing coach in their other loss, to San Jose in 2019.
It was only the second time of 16 that the Stars won a best-of-seven series after losing the first two games. The only other was the very first playoff series in franchise history, when the Minnesota North Stars were down 0-2 before beating the Los Angeles Kings in seven games to open the 1968 playoffs.
AP NHL playoffs: https://apnews.com/hub/stanley-cup and https://www.apnews.com/hub/NHL
Spectators react during the third period in Game 7 of an NHL hockey Stanley Cup first-round playoff series between the Dallas Stars and the Vegas Golden Knights, Sunday, May 5, 2024, in Dallas. (AP Photo/Brandon Wade)
Dallas Stars' Jamie Benn (14) controls the puck as he and teammate Joe Pavelski (16) attack against Vegas Golden Knights defenseman Shea Theodore (27) and goaltender Adin Hill during the second period in Game 7 of an NHL hockey Stanley Cup first-round playoff series, Sunday, May 5, 2024, in Dallas. (AP Photo/Brandon Wade)
Dallas Stars left wing Jason Robertson works out prior to Game 7 of an NHL hockey Stanley Cup first-round playoff series against the Vegas Golden Knights, Sunday, May 5, 2024, in Dallas. (AP Photo/Brandon Wade)
Vegas Golden Knights goaltender Adin Hill deflects a shot during the first period in Game 7 of an NHL hockey Stanley Cup first-round playoff series against the Dallas Stars, Sunday, May 5, 2024, in Dallas. (AP Photo/Brandon Wade)
Dallas Stars center Radek Faksa (12) competes for the puck against Vegas Golden Knights center Nicolas Roy (10) and defenseman Alec Martinez (23) during the third period in Game 7 of an NHL hockey Stanley Cup first-round playoff series, Sunday, May 5, 2024, in Dallas. (AP Photo/Brandon Wade)
Vegas Golden Knights right wing Mark Stone (61) and center William Karlsson (71) try to control the puck against the Dallas Stars during the second period in Game 7 of an NHL hockey Stanley Cup first-round playoff series, Sunday, May 5, 2024, in Dallas. (AP Photo/Brandon Wade)
Dallas Stars goaltender Jake Oettinger, right, blocks a shot as teammate Roope Hintz (24) defends against Vegas Golden Knights center Tomas Hertl (48) during the first period in Game 7 of an NHL hockey Stanley Cup first-round playoff series, Sunday, May 5, 2024, in Dallas. (AP Photo/Brandon Wade)
Vegas Golden Knights center Brett Howden (21) celebrates his second period goal with Michael Amadio (22) in Game 7 of an NHL hockey Stanley Cup first-round playoff series against the Dallas Stars, Sunday, May 5, 2024, in Dallas. (AP Photo/Brandon Wade)
Dallas Stars center Logan Stankoven (11) skates against Vegas Golden Knights defenseman Alec Martinez (23) during the first period in Game 7 of an NHL hockey Stanley Cup first-round playoff series, Sunday, May 5, 2024, in Dallas. (AP Photo/Brandon Wade)
Vegas Golden Knights goaltender Adin Hill, top, leaves his crease to make a save on a breakaway by Dallas Stars center Sam Steel (18) during the third period in Game 7 of an NHL hockey Stanley Cup first-round playoff series, Sunday, May 5, 2024, in Dallas. (AP Photo/Brandon Wade)
Vegas Golden Knights center Tomas Hertl (48) skates by as Dallas Stars center Wyatt Johnston (53) celebrates his first period goal in Game 7 of an NHL hockey Stanley Cup first-round playoff series, Sunday, May 5, 2024, in Dallas. (AP Photo/Brandon Wade)
Dallas Stars players acknowledge spectators following their 2-1 victory over the Vegas Golden Knights in Game 7 of an NHL hockey Stanley Cup first-round playoff series, Sunday, May 5, 2024, in Dallas. (AP Photo/Brandon Wade)
Streamers drop after the Dallas Stars defeated the Vegas Golden Knights 2-1 in Game 7 of an NHL hockey Stanley Cup first-round playoff series, Sunday, May 5, 2024, in Dallas. (AP Photo/Brandon Wade)
Vegas Golden Knights goaltender Adin Hill eyes the puck on a scoring shot by Dallas Stars center Radek Faksa during the third period in Game 7 of an NHL hockey Stanley Cup first-round playoff series, Sunday, May 5, 2024, in Dallas. (AP Photo/Brandon Wade)
Dallas Stars center Wyatt Johnston, center, celebrates his first period goal with Joe Pavelski (16) and Miro Heiskanen (4) during Game 7 of an NHL hockey Stanley Cup first-round playoff series against the Vegas Golden Knights, Sunday, May 5, 2024, in Dallas. (AP Photo/Brandon Wade)
