Bird Flu Outbreak Decimates Family-Owned Kakadoodle Chicken Farm in Illinois

The farm lost nearly 3,000 hens to the highly contagious H5N1 virus, prompting a 150-day quarantine and a fundraising effort to rebuild.

Kakadoodle Farm in Matteson, Illinois, lost its entire flock of nearly 3,000 hens after a bird flu outbreak was confirmed by the USDA.
The infection, likely spread by wild birds contaminating chicken feed, wiped out the flock within days, devastating the farm’s egg production of 2,000 eggs per week.
The farm has been placed under a mandatory 150-day quarantine, during which no new hens can be raised, and sanitation efforts are underway.
A GoFundMe campaign has raised over $17,000 to support employees, rebuild the flock, and construct a new high-tunnel coop to improve biosecurity.
The outbreak highlights the ongoing threat of H5N1 bird flu, which has killed millions of birds globally and raised concerns about potential human transmission.