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‘In February a 2-year
old male cat was having lunch. It was an unusual treat of a pigeon
that had died. Five days later the cat began to show a discharge
from his nose, run a temperature, panting, and appeared to be
depressed. This quickly worsened to convulsions and ataxia and
died two days after the initial symptoms appeared.’ This
article appeared in the Sep 3, 2004 CIDRAP [Center for Infectious
Disease Research].
This story is not meant to
scare you, it is meant to INFORM you. Based on the recent news
release I don’t believe any cases of this magnitude have
shown up in the United States. But just because it isn’t
here ... yet, doesn’t mean that we should ignore the possibility.
When the above case was reported the World Health Organization
said “cats had not previously been considered naturally
susceptible to flu viruses”. This is the first study to
report entire H5N1 genome sequences in a naturally infected domestic
cat. Cats are companion animals and may live in very close contact
with humans. Although no direct transmission of H5N1 from cats
to humans has been reported, it is possible.
‘At the end of February,
2006 a variation of the H5N1 virus was detected in a domestic
cat found dead on the northern island of Ruegen, Germany. Serological
studies in several Asian countries suggest that dogs may also
contract the H5N1 infection. Countries in Europe have advised
owners of pets living near H5N1 wild bird foci to keep cats indoors
and dogs on a leash when taken for a walk.’
Now we come back to the ‘here/now
‘! We must accept the fact that there is a threat! It is
going to be more difficult on some of us cat owners than others.
My two cats, for example, are declawed and do not go outside
at all - so I am reasonably sure they are safe. But for those
of you that allow your cat free access to the outside to roam
and play (and chase those birds) you might want to exercise some
extra caution for a time until this threat passes. It may have
seemed cute in the past when your ‘alpha cat’ decided
to bring home the bacon in the form of a dead bird and lay it
in front of your favorite chair - that time has past. Now we
must take some extra caution. Of course, in any circumstances
of questionable behavior or possible illness, the vet is the
best bet. Even a phone call to discuss the current circumstances
would help rule out any possibility of a worse case scenario.
Denis Schwartz
http://www.nappingpersians.com
Disability retired public employee
with time and cats on his hands, speaks from the heart about
our 'other' four legged friends.
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