DJDS Students Help Monitor Chickens During Avian Flu Season

Keeping farmette animals healthy is a priority for DJDS Farmette Manager Alix Kivlin, and a familiar threat has resurfaced: avian influenza. 

As of Jan. 29, certain areas in Colorado are under quarantine, according to the Colorado Department of Agriculture. In Weld County, 1.3 million chickens were culled as a preventive measure, affecting egg prices across the state. 

Colorado State Veterinarian Dr. Maggie Baldwin said the flu spreads “like wildfire.” Since last summer, there have been 54 recorded flock detections in Colorado. The disease is deadly— 100% of infected chickens die. 

The school’s farmette faces particular risk, but also protective factors. The flu mainly spreads through goose droppings, and geese are common on campus. 

Baldwin said chickens should be kept away from other flocks to reduce the risk of infection. Kivlin said she isn’t worried because the spread is slowing. She added that geese tend to avoid the chickens and the corral, likely because of the many other farm animals. 

Signs of infection include lethargy, loss of appetite, and sudden death. Kivlin said she and the volunteers monitor these symptoms as well as discoloration of the chickens’ waddle and comb. “Students are with the chickens, and they are consistently monitoring them purely by circumstance of class time, which is a wonderful benefit for all,” she said. 

The avian flu can rarely infect humans. No human cases were linked to the most recent outbreak, but since 2024, ten people in Colorado have been affected, according to the state agriculture website.