Bird flu is spreading – and the EU is urging cat and dog owners to keep their animals inside or on a leash in affected areas.
Even in Sweden, pet owners should be careful.
– Be vigilant, says deputy state veterinarian Emelie Pettersson at SVA.
Bird flu is rampant in Europe, with dead birds as a result. In Sweden, for example, hundreds of seagulls in Kalmar have been found dead, and during the late spring the Stockholm area was also affected by bird flu.
Keep away from dead birds
More animals than birds can be infected by the virus, which has prompted the EU to go out and warn cat and dog owners. Pet owners are advised to keep their animals inside or on a leash in the areas where infection has been detected.
“It is recommended to avoid exposing cats and dogs and generally carnivorous pets to dead or sick animals,” writes the EU’s Food Safety Authority (Efsa) in a press release.
In Sweden, the State Veterinary Institute (SVA) advises dog owners to leash their animals when in risk areas.
– Dogs can be kept on a leash and away from dead seagulls, says deputy state veterinarian Emelie Pettersson.
– You shouldn’t let the dog come into contact with dead birds, don’t let the dog retrieve or sniff them, she continues.
Difficult to shut in outdoor cats
Indoor cats can remain inside. However, it is more difficult to lock up the outdoor cats, notes Emelie Pettersson.
– It is practically difficult to keep outdoor cats confined. At the moment, it is primarily seagulls that are affected, and cats are usually not in close contact with them.
TT: How dangerous is the virus for dogs and cats?
– There have been so few reports, so it is difficult to say how dangerous it is. This particular virus seems to be adapted to birds, and in Sweden to seagulls.
Pet owners should keep track of which areas are affected by bird flu.
Follow the news reporting around the virus, advises state veterinarian Emelie Pettersson.
– I don’t think you should be worried. But be vigilant and think about bird flu.
Facts: The situation in Sweden
In Europe, the number of cases in wild birds has increased in 2023. Laughing gulls have been particularly affected, according to the Norwegian Veterinary Institute.
The dead laughing gulls that were recently found mainly on the islands outside the castle in Kalmar were infected with bird flu of type H5N1. Upwards of 1,000 birds have died.
Bird flu has also been detected in the Stockholm area. During April and May, there have been reports of sick and dead laughing gulls at, for example, Råstasjön in Solna and Lötsjön in Sundbyberg.
The disease is spread via migratory birds. The fact that laughing gulls are now dying in large numbers is due to the fact that the virus has evolved to hit seagulls hard, at the same time that they nest in colonies close together.
Source: TT