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At the end of December, a domestic cat had to be euthanized after being infected with avian flu. Should we be worried about it? The answer of Dr. Bruno Pelletier, veterinarian and vice-president of the union of liberal practicing veterinarians Ile-de-France.
This is a great first in France. A domestic cat belonging to a family from Deux-Sèvres was euthanized on December 23 in Mauléon (Deux-Sèvres) after being infected with the bird flu virus.
The cat lived near a duck farm
According to Ouest France, which disclosed the information, the cat – named Neo – belonged to a family residing in Mauléon, near a laying duck farm. In mid-December, the farm was hit by bird flu.
“We were notified the same day the 8,000 poultry were slaughtered. In front of our house, on our plot, the veterinary services were parked. There was a barnum, everyone was in wetsuits“, confirms Arnaud Lambert, the father and owner of the cat, to the regional daily.
Shortly after, the cat tested positive for the H5N1 type virus. It was this infected farm that was “at the origin of the contamination of the cat“, confirms ANSES in a communicated.
At the end of December, a sick cat tested positive for the avian influenza virus. #H5N1 in the Deux-Sèvres.
The multiplication of transfers of this disease from birds to mammals in different countries calls for vigilance.https://t.co/XIm9iIlI6g— Anses (@Anses_fr) January 24, 2023
The animal, which was suffering from severe neurological symptoms due to the viral infection, therefore had to be “euthanasia“.
“A rare case”
According to veterinarian Bruno Pelletier, it is a “extremely rare case“.
“If inter-species transmission is possible, as was the case here, transmission from animals to humans is much rarer. Moreover, in this case, no human infection was found. This does not prevent the prefecture and the veterinary services from implementing very strict measures. The virus can indeed mutate and develop an increased susceptibility to pets and humans.“, warns the expert.
No need to worry about our four-legged animals.
“The A(H5N1) virus works like the Covid, that is to say by oral contamination. Except if the cat sneezes or rejects contaminated excretions, the risks are very low: there is no direct proximity between the cat and the human“, says the expert.