Protect your pets from the bird flu circulating in Michigan
Pet owners must expect rising veterinary costs
The constantly rising veterinary costs are causing more and more problems for pet owners.
Michigan is a national bird flu hotspot and pet owners should be aware of the potential risks, veterinarians warn.
The H5N1 avian influenza virus making headlines in Michigan and across the U.S. is called highly pathogenic bird flu, so named because it is so well adapted to infecting and killing birds. The current H5N1 strain is almost always fatal in poultry, but causes a puzzling array of symptoms in other animals – including those commonly kept as pets, particularly cats.
Cats are extremely vulnerable to H5N1 avian influenza and are at risk of developing neurological symptoms and dying. Cats that drank raw milk from sick cows also became infected with avian influenza and developed neurological symptoms and eye and nasal discharge; many died.
New research suggests that ferrets can also become seriously ill and die from the virus.
Although dogs can be infected with the H5N1 bird flu, reports of illness in dogs are rare, and when they do become ill, symptoms are mild, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported earlier this month.
Veterinarians urge pet owners to ensure that their cats and dogs do not hunt birds or eat the carcasses of birds or other animals to avoid the risk of infection. They should also avoid contact with other infected animals such as cows and poultry, as well as unpasteurized milk.
Here are some tips from the World Organization for Animal Health to protect your pets – especially cats – from bird flu:
- If possible, avoid direct contact with sick poultry, dead wild birds, objects with traces of bird droppings, or surfaces or water sources (e.g. ponds, troughs, lakes) that may be contaminated with bird saliva, droppings or body fluids.
- When you return home, make sure your shoes are out of reach of pets.
- Clean your shoes when you come home from outdoors where there may be bird droppings.
- Disinfect the surface where you left your shoes.
- Follow standard hygiene measures, such as washing your hands with warm water and soap, especially after returning home and before handling food.
- Pay attention to hygiene when preparing meals.
- Avoid feeding raw poultry to pets, especially if outbreaks of avian influenza are reported in the area.
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