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Two " exclusively indoor " cat from two separate family in Michigan caught H5N1 shuttle flu and ultimately died , according to a new report . The face raise the possibility that the great unwashed in the cats ' house pass the virus on to their pet , but a lack of data somewhat muddies the picture .
The cases are described in a newMorbidity and Mortality Weekly Report(MMWR ) published Thursday ( Feb. 20 ) . Several authors on the paper are scientist affiliate with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention ( CDC ) , while the rest are link with Michigan health and agricultural agencies or universities .
Two indoors cats in Michigan caught bird flu in 2024, a new report details.
H5N1 has long been knownto come down both uncivilized anddomestic cats , and it can cause serious symptoms in the animals , include neurologic problems , and lead to decease . Since May 2022 , the U.S. Department of Agriculture hasrecorded dozens of H5N1 infectionsin wild and domesticated felines across the nation . There have also been late account of preferent cats catch bird flufrom contaminate crude preferred food mathematical product .
" antecedently , there have been reports of outdoor cats associated with U.S. dairy farm who have been infect with the highly pathogenic avian influenza A(H5N1 ) computer virus and subsequently died , " a CDC voice told Live Science in an email . " This is the first document case of reported indoor only domesticated cats with H5N1 to engagement . "
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What ’s more , the two affected cats " did not consumeunpasteurized [ raw ] Milk River , " the representative say .
In the first of the two late cat cases , a house with three indoor khat saw one of its felines get sick in May 2024 . That cat , a 5 - year - one-time female , initially start demo a want of appetite , as well as lethargy and disorientation . The cat was bring in to a local vet and then the Michigan State University ( MSU ) Veterinary Medical Center , which has advanced treatments available . But due to " rapid disease patterned advance , " the cat-o’-nine-tails was euthanized .
Bird influenza hadbeen cover on some Michigan dairy farmsby that time , and the African tea ’s owner worked on a dairy farm , although not now with the animal . The sick cat ’s body was submitted for further examination after euthanization , and swabs from the cat ’s brain and nose hail back positive for H5N1 . The virus samples from the Arabian tea match the virus circulate in local cattle .
This discovery prompted a broad investigation , in which officials incur that another indoor cat in the household developed likely bird flu symptoms after the first qat did . These symptoms included decreased appetite and washy eye discharge , but the cat ultimately recovered without specific discussion . No specimens from the 2d cat were tested for H5N1 , but the timing of illness may point to possible transmission .
Although the dairy worker wane to be tested for raspberry flu , they did cover experiencing emesis and looseness a day before the first cat got sick . The three other members of the worker ’s house try negative for flu A , the all-encompassing group of viruses H5N1 belongs to .
Complicating the word-painting , one person in the household — a teenager who ’d had " regular contact " with the sick hombre — grow pallid about six day after the cat did . Their symptoms include coughing , tender pharynx , cephalalgia and muscle aches . However , the stripling tested negatively charged for flu and instead come back positive on a exam that attend for other common viruses , such as common - frigid virus . So while the timing of the teen ’s infection could be worrisome , base on these test solution , it appears that the individual had a run - of - the - grinder respiratory illness .
Around the same time frame in a different Michigan household , a 2d indoor big cat came down with doll flu .
A 6 - calendar month - one-time male , that khat was also an solely indoor pet . The owner take the cat-o'-nine-tails into the MSU clinic after it showed one day of " progressive neurological declension , " facial gibbousness and stopped eating . The cat pall within 24 hr of these symptom egress . Nasal swabs from the big cat were positive for H5N1 .
The cat ’s owner , a dairy actor who transported unpasteurized ( in the altogether ) milk from various farm , worsen examination for bird flu . The worker had a " concern of losing employment as a consequence of transmit with public health officials and implicate farm that allow Milk River , " the MMWR note . However , the worker did describe having illustrious eye irritation two days before the cat got macabre . ( Recent H5N1 infections in humans haveoften involved eye symptoms , namely pinkeye . )
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The worker also report having not worn protective equipment when handling bleak Milk River and frequently experiencing " splash exposures " to the face , eyes and clothing while put to work . The cat that got infect and died frequently roll in the owner ’s wearing apparel , whereas a 2d cat in the household that did n’t get sick did not demo that behavior .
" Because neither dairy farm prole received testing for A(H5 ) , whether cat 1A ’s owner ’s GI symptom or cat 2A ’s owner ’s ocular symptoms were because of HPAI A(H5N1 ) virus infection or a different aetiology [ cause ] is unknown , " the MMWR says .
" It would have been idealistic to have all house phallus tested for H5N1 , " the CDC spokesperson secernate Live Science . " But obtaining the symptom of all family member and examination of some was noteworthy . "
Notably , a data table included in the new MMWR was actually published in the beginning in the calendar month , The New York Times reportedFeb . 6 . This seems to have been accidental , as the table was promptly taken down .
" A data table from this MMWR study was inadvertently station online , and it was swiftly removed , " the CDC interpreter confirmed to populate skill
allot to the Times report , in early February , the datum tabular array had shortly appeared in a report that otherwise focused on air tone and theLos Angeles County wildfires , the Times report . Prior to the wildfire report ’s release , apause had been placed on external communications from federal health agencies , including the CDC ’s MMWR , which had been published every week for ten . At the time , experts expressed business that the data were potentially being withheld for political intention .
This article is for informational intention only and is not entail to offer aesculapian or veterinary advice .
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