DARKE/MERCER COUNTIES — Nearly 4 million new cases of High Path Avian Influenza, otherwise known as bird flu, have been confirmed in the Miami Valley over the last few days.
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Over 3.7 million commercial chickens and more than 86,000 commercial turkeys in Darke and Mercer counties were confirmed positive for bird flu by the National Veterinary Services Laboratory in 10 reports on Jan. 23 and Jan. 24, according to the Ohio Department of Agriculture (ODA).
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More than 1.9 million birds have been “depopulated.” ODA’s procedure is to quarantine the impacted facility and to depopulate, or kill, the birds to prevent the disease from spreading.
ODA’s report indicates that the process of depopulating the remaining 1.8 million birds is ongoing.
Another 190,000 commercial chickens have been depopulated in Darke County, but is unclear if they tested positive for bird flu, according to ODA’s report.
As reported by News Center 7, 1.9 million commercial chickens and 72,282 commercial turkeys in Darke and Mercer counties have already been depopulated in January.
An additional 930,000 commercial chickens in Darke County were depopulated in December.
The exact location of where these birds were in the Miami Valley was not initially released.
As previously reported by News Center 7, the Ohio Department of Agriculture (ODA) said the culprits spreading the virus are wild birds who like to hang out near coups.
“Wild birds, geese, any birds flying around,” ODA’s Brian Baldridge said. “We kind of look at them as being a carrier of this disease.”
Approximately 6,050,026 commercial birds tested positive for bird flu in the Miami Valley in 2025, according to ODA.
News Center 7 will continue to follow this story.
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