Bird positive for West Nile Virus

West Ridge Animal Hospital has recently submitted the first West Nile Virus positive bird to the Department of Public Health and Environment. Here is the story as told by Audra, one of our Client Care Representatives:

"On July 10th, a concerned woman on the UNC campus called in saying that she had found a large black bird that appeared to be injured on the campus. She had called animal control and they told her that we may be able to help her. She reported that the bird was holding its wing oddly and didn't seem to want to fly away when she approached. I told her to try to catch the bird and bring it in and we would try to help it. After she got off the phone, she went to get the bird and when she got outside, she found that there was an additional large bird with the first one. When she tried to catch the first bird, it flew off into a tree and seemed to be disoriented. The second bird did not try to fly away when she approached it either so she caught that bird to bring it into us as well. On her way over to our clinic the bird passed away. When it arrived, we called the Weld County Department of Public Health and Environment and they came to pick up the bird for West Nile Virus testing. They told me on the phone that they hadn't had any birds yet this year that they could test and that this specimen would be very helpful...

Later that afternoon, we were informed that the second bird was indeed positive for West Nile Virus. In addition, it is the first confirmed case of West Nile in birds for Weld County this year."

As most everyone knows by now, West Nile Virus is transmitted by mosquitoes- most often at dusk and dawn. The disease can cause severe illness, life-altering disabilities and even death. Because we here at West Ridge are dedicated to not only the safety and care of your pets, but also to helping injured wildlife and educating and protecting the public, we send all suspicious birds we treat or find to the Department of Public Health and Environment. We will keep you updated as to other West Nile activity in Weld County. For more information on West Nile Virus, please visit the following links:

Weld County West Nile Virus FAQs

Weld County West Nile Virus Information Page

CDC West Nile Virus Homepage