Posted on 02/28/2006 6:26:32 PM PST by Mother Abigail
Dead cat found with bird flu in Germany
BERLIN, Feb 28 (Reuters) - A dead cat found in Germany was infected with a form of the H5N1 bird flu virus, officials said on Tuesday, the first such case in the country and one which may fuel public fears over the disease.
The World Health Organisation (WHO) and disease experts said the case probably did not increase the risk to humans from a virus which has killed at least 93 people since late 2003.
But officials in parts of Germany where bird flu has been discovered advised owners to keep their cats indoors and one expert said cat to human transmission could not be ruled out.
Germany's Federal Research Institute for Animal Health said it was still conducting tests to see whether the virus was the deadly strain which has led to sickness and fatalities among humans in Turkey and Asia.
The cat was found at the weekend on the island of Ruegen off Germany's northern coast, where the virus was first identified in birds earlier this month, the institute said.
Till Backhaus, the region's agriculture minister, said the cat's owner noticed the animal behaving strangely and informed local officials when it died the following day.
The discovery may increase concern that the virus could spread to other species in Europe as it has in a number of cases in other parts of the world.
"It has been known for some time that cats can become infected by eating infected birds," Thomas Mettenleiter, the institute's president said in a statement.
A number of big cats in Asian zoos have died after being fed infected birds and domestic cats have been shown to be particularly vulnerable to the disease, the institute said.
It added there had so far been no known case of a human becoming infected by a cat.
The WHO said the case of the dead cat in Germany had not raised its concern about the threat to human health.
"We know cats can be infected. We know H5N1 is capable of infecting a wide diversity of mammals. We are not exactly sure what it means for human health, but I don't think it raises WHO concerns," spokeswoman Maria Cheng said.
"KEEP CATS INDOORS"
Bird flu has led to the culling or deaths of some 200 million birds since late 2003. In poultry flocks it can cause sudden severe disease, rapid contagion and a mortality rate that can approach 100 percent within 48 hours.
Although essentially an animal disease, humans can contract the virus through direct contact with sick poultry.
Albert Osterhaus, a virologist at the Erasmus Medical Centre in the Netherlands who has conducted research into the virus in cats, said he was not surprised by the case.
"Cat to human transmission is theoretically possible and not to be excluded. We have seen cat-to-cat transmission in laboratory experiments.
"It is not a surprise. We knew for sure that cats can get infected. The cat caught the disease most probably by eating an infected bird."
"People should keep their cats inside in regions where the disease was found," Osterhaus told Reuters. (Additional reporting by Stephanie Nebehay in Geneva and Anna Mudeva in Amsterdam)
http://www.alertnet.org/thenews/newsdesk/L28468688.htm
B2M transmission Germany
MA
If the cat had cooked the bird before eating it, there would have been no problem.
Another reason to stay away from cats.
You know that is a problem. My cat is really bad about bringing in live birds.
True, but if the cat doesn't cook the bird but I cook the cat and consume it (with a lovely brandy sauce, of course), will I have problems?
P.S.,get them birdies.
Maybe people should just keep their cats in their homes instead of letting them roam about.
Q: Does a cat always land on its feet?
A: When you drop it from 52 stories up, does it really matter?
Dead cat bump.
Oh no! Yet another food group for the germans to scratch off their menu.
Interesting. The virus does appear to have jumped species, but not entirely to ours...yet. Keeping my eye on this one.
Why yes, yes it does. Natural History Magazine had an article some 15 years back or so which found that cats will survive a fall from anywhere above about seven stories. What happens is they will fairly quickly get into their falling stance similar to a skydiver. Because of their weight distribution, they will reach terminal velocity, become relatively calm and relaxed prior to landing. The stance evenly distributes the weight and the calm state relaxes their muscles and they land with only minimal injury. Cats routinely survive falls from higher than about 70 feet. Lower than that, they never reach terminal velocity, remain rigid in panic and generally the outcome is not pretty.
A: When you drop it from 52 stories up, does it really matter?"
This might be an urban legend, but cats can fall from extreme heights and survive. Supposedly, beyond a certain height, a cat is actually less like to die outright from a fall as it may take them a while longer to assume the perfect position for a hard landing than it does to reach terminal velocity.
Please don't test this one out at home boys and girls.
This is the first bird to mammal transmission in Europe and is not good news.
Cats are the one vector we must avoid.
MA
How are they going to find and breed resistant birds if they kill off entire herds. Wouldn't it be better to let the flue work its say through a flock, and then get new breeding stock from the survivors?
It's the one on the end, isn't it?
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