Arkansas webinars focus on HPAI prevention
A series of webinars this month aims to help poultry owners protect their birds from the H5N1 strain of the Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza, which continues to infect poultry in Arkansas and across the country.
Dr. Dustan Clark, extension poultry health veterinarian for the University of Arkansas System Division of Agriculture and associate director of the university’s Center of Excellence for Poultry Science, will lead the sessions.
Registration is open now for online trainings in January. The Jan. 13 session was an update on HPAI and Jan. 14’s webinar was on biosecurity. More online and in-person trainings will be scheduled through February. The presentations are free, but registration is required.
Trainings
Jan. 20 — Sick Birds? There’s a Test for That! Diagnostic Testing at the Arkansas Veterinary Diagnostic Laboratory for the Backyard Flock Owner, 6 p.m.
Register: https://uada.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_5zy7Ojz9Q5WeWaPHrwgPrA
Jan. 21 — Rodent Control as Part of Biosecurity Program, 10-11 a.m.
Register: https://uada.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_DSRRbSllRN-_s3kCIQwgjQ
Jan. 22 — Biosecurity Practices for Poultry Diseases Control in Backyard/Hobby Flocks, 6-7 p.m.
Register: https://uada.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_17F9qLdmRBKWmf3XPxyeMA
“We’re continuing to see cases pop up in Arkansas and across the country,” Clark said.
Last month, animal health officials confirmed HPAI-positive birds in a broiler flock in Drew County, a backyard flock in White County, and most recently, a Prairie County backyard flock confirmed on Dec. 31, 2025.
HPAI is an airborne respiratory virus that spreads easily among chickens through nasal and eye secretions and manure. The virus can be spread from flock to flock, including by wild birds, through contact with infected poultry, by equipment, and on caretakers’ clothing and shoes.
Backyard flocks are at higher risk of contracting avian flu than commercial operations because they are more likely to spend time outdoors and can be exposed to droppings from wild birds, which can carry influenza. The peak of migrating waterfowl in mid-December further increased risks.
To get HPAI updates, trainings, and biosecurity information, visit https://www.uaex.uada.edu/farm-ranch/biosecurity/avian-flu/.
