Cat had swine flu, official says
By The Associated Press
This article was published November 4, 2009 at 5:14 p.m.
- Comments (2)
- aAFont Size
DES MOINES, Iowa — A 13-year-old Iowa cat has been infected with swine flu, veterinary and federal officials said Wednesday in what is believed to be the first case of the H1N1 virus in a feline in the United States.
The domestic shorthaired cat was treated last week at Iowa State University College of Veterinary Medicine in Ames and has recovered, officials said. The virus also has been confirmed in two ferrets — one in Oregon and the other in Nebraska — but they died.
“We’ve known certainly it’s possible this could happen,” said Centers for Disease Control and Prevention spokesman Tom Skinner. “This may be the first instance where we have documentation that transmission occurred involving cats or dogs.”
The veterinarian who treated the cat, Dr. Brett Sponseller, said two of the three people in the cat’s Iowa home had flu-like symptoms before the cat became ill. The case was confirmed at both Iowa State and the U.S. Department of Agriculture.
Other influenza strains have been known to cross species, but Sponseller cautioned against drawing too many conclusions from the cat including whether other pets could also get the swine flu.
“It’s well documented in influenza in general, but this is the first highly suspected case of H1N1 going from humans into a cat,” he said.
The indoor cat was lethargic, had a loss of appetite and appeared to have trouble breathing after it became infected, Sponseller said. Its owners declined to comment.
Officials said pet owners should take the same precautions against spreading swine flu to pets as they would with humans.
Getting children vaccinated for swine flu can also help prevent the illness from spreading to pets. There is no swine flu vaccine for pets.
Dr. Ann Garvey, Iowa’s state health veterinarian, said it is not yet known how sick cats or other pets could get from swine flu.
“Because we haven’t seen that many cases, it’s difficult to give a blanket assessment on how sick it can make an animal,” she said.
Comments on: Cat had swine flu, official says
To report abuse or misuse of this area please hit the "Suggest Removal" link in the comment to alert our online managers. Read our Terms of Use policy.
You must login to make comments.
shawnmatthews1 says... November 5, 2009 at 3:27 a.m.
"Is it true??"
My mind raised this question when i had seen this article. But when i read "The veterinarian who treated the cat, Dr. Brett Sponseller, said two of the three people in the cat’s Iowa home had flu-like symptoms before the cat became ill." Then i get to know about the truth.
Obviously the world is full of strange things Anything can happen in this world...!!
==================
Shawn matthews
buy forclosed homes
( permalink | suggest removal )
djasika says... December 23, 2009 at 5:56 a.m.
Hi interesting article about cat sick of swine flu. You can write a little about the disease and symptoms such as: the swine flu exhibit the same symptoms as human influenza. There are, however, and small features. Swine flu spreads from person to person through secretions in the transmission of airborne route or direct contact. Carriers of the virus have contact and can carry the virus one day after having it intercepted and 7 days after symptoms have appeared.
The virus is transmitted through sneezing and coughing. It has been shown that the virus is influenced by the successful preparation and relentsa Tamiflu.
Swine flu symptoms: sudden weakness - one can hardly continue to work, train, learn, and to perform any type of activity, temperature is above 38 degrees, loss of appetite, nausea and vomiting; Pneumonia still a 2-s or 3-day, pain in the muscles of the eyes, eyeballs and the whole body. In utoken measures and proper treatment occurs death from respiratory failure. Patients respond to the adoption of Tamiflu and relentsa preparations. And I want to offer you a site where Mary will notice the animals for diseases and veterinary medicine. This is a quote from the site - "medications / medical supplies - B2B directory" write it on Google and you'll come up the site.
( permalink | suggest removal )
To report abuse or misuse of this area please hit the "Suggest Removal" link in the comment to alert our online managers. Read our Terms of Use policy.