NYT A few “reasonable precautions” can help people keep their pets safe from the H5N1 virus, experts say.
Over the past few months, a bird flu outbreak has spread swiftly through dairy cows in the United States, infecting more than 90 herds in 12 states. Along the way, the virus has caused collateral damage in several other species, spreading from dairies to poultry farms and from cows into at least three farm workers, who developed symptoms of mild illness.
It has also caused mounting casualties in cats. On some dairy farms, sick or dead cats have provided an early signal that something was amiss. “They’re a bit of a canary in a coal mine,” Dr. Kammy Johnson, a veterinary epidemiologist for the Agriculture Department, said at a news briefing on Thursday.
Since the dairy outbreak was first detected in late March, at least 21 cats in nine states have caught the virus, according to the department, which recently began tracking the feline cases.
Scientists have long known that cats are vulnerable to being infected by avian influenza, a group of flu viruses typically found in birds. In 2020, a new version of a bird flu virus, known as H5N1, emerged. It has spread rapidly around the world, infecting many wild birds and repeatedly spilling over into mammals, including cats.