RALEIGH – State Veterinarian Mike Martin has granted entry into North Carolina to Santa Claus and his reindeer. This ensures that Dasher, Dancer, Prancer, Vixen, Comet, Cupid, Donner, Blitzen, and yes, even Rudolph will be allowed into the state on Christmas Eve. Reindeer are part of the cervid family that include deer, elk, moose and caribou. The North Carolina Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services provides oversight of the movement of captive cervid into the state.
Topics Related to Veterinary
State veterinary officials are asking horse owners in North Carolina to watch for symptoms of a highly contagious equine disease following diagnoses of multiple horses with Equine Herpes Myeloencephalopathy, the neurologic disease associated with Equine Herpes Virus. Cases were confirmed Nov. 9 by the Texas Animal Health Commission and the Oklahoma Department of Agriculture, Food and Forestry. Currently, there are no confirmed cases of EHV-1/EHM in North Carolina.
A turkey breeding operation in Wayne County has tested positive for High Path Avian Influenza. The positive sample was first identified by the N.C. Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services Veterinary Diagnostic Lab in Raleigh. This is the first case of high path avian influenza in commercial poultry in North Carolina since January 2025. Prior to this case, North Carolina had 14 commercial flocks and 12 backyard flocks impacted by avian influenza. The latest case in Wayne County impacts 9,500 turkeys.
RALEIGH – A backyard flock in Rutherford County has tested positive for High Path Avian Influenza (HPAI). The positive sample was identified by the N.C. Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services Veterinary Diagnostic Lab in Raleigh. This is the first confirmed positive in Rutherford County. In the last 30 days, there have been three backyard flocks with confirmed positives in North Carolina. Cases have also been confirmed in Guilford and Union counties.
Agriculture Commissioner Steve Troxler is encouraging equine owners to have their animals vaccinated against Eastern Equine Encephalomyelitis and West Nile Virus. “Mosquito-breeding season in North Carolina lasts from spring until the first frost and horses are at risk if not properly vaccinated,” Troxler said. “EEE is fatal 90 percent of the time in horses and WNV has a fatality rate of 30 percent. However, both diseases are preventable by vaccination.”
North Carolina poultry has been designated High Path Avian Influenza-free by the World Organization for Animal Health. This designation means that the state can resume exports and international trade for poultry products.
RALEIGH – A backyard flock in Dare County has tested positive for High Path Avian Influenza (HPAI). The positive sample was identified by the N.C. Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services Veterinary Diagnostic Lab in Raleigh. The flock has been depopulated to prevent spread of the disease. This is the first confirmed positive in Dare County. In January, HPAI was found in two commercial turkey operations in Sampson County and a layer operation in Hyde County.
A commercial layer operation in Hyde County has tested positive for High Path Avian Influenza. The disease was first identified by the N.C. Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services Veterinary Diagnostic Lab in Raleigh and then confirmed by the National Veterinary Services Laboratory in Ames, Iowa. This is the first case of high path avian influenza in commercial poultry in North Carolina since February 2024. Prior to this case, North Carolina has had 11 affected commercial flocks and eight backyard flocks.
RALEIGH – State Veterinarian Mike Martin has granted entry into North Carolina to Santa Claus and his magical reindeer. This ensures that Dasher, Dancer, Prancer, Vixen, Comet, Cupid, Donner, Blitzen, and yes, even Rudolph will be allowed into the state on Christmas Eve. Reindeer are part of the cervid family that include deer, elk, moose and caribou. The North Carolina Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services provides oversight of the movement of captive cervid into the state.
RALEIGH – The N.C. Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services has lifted the quarantine of a HPAI-positive dairy herd after serial testing was negative for the virus. This herd was the only HPAI-positive herd within the state and was directly linked to a dairy herd in Texas that was clinically affected and epidemiologically linked to the virus.