Bird flu detected in stray cat, backyard chickens in San Mateo County
San Mateo County: Bird flu detected in stray cat, backyard chickens
Authorities in San Mateo County urged residents to take precautions after two cases of bird flu were detected in the county.
SAN MATEO, Calif. - Authorities in San Mateo County urged residents to take precautions after two cases of bird flu were detected in the county.
Signs of H5N1 or bird flu
What we know:
The first case was in a backyard poultry flock. More recently, another case was detected in a stray cat in Half Moon Bay.
A family brought the cat to the Peninsula Humane Society.
"They noticed some things and brought the stray cat to us," said Colleen Crowley with the Peninsula Humane Society and SPCA.
They noticed the cat was having difficulty walking and trouble with its sight. As it turned out, these are signs of H5N1, or bird flu.
"There can be neurological symptoms with this as I understand it. So that can look like circling around, tremors, vision loss," explained Crowley. There can be lethargy and respiratory issues as well.
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The cat had to be euthanized, as did the backyard flock, which was located in the city of San Mateo.
Authorities said the cases are unrelated.
"We don't really know exactly how it got either to the poultry or the cat, but it definitely could be from the wild bird migration," said Koren Widdel, agricultural commissioner for San Mateo County.
Bird flu infections in humans rare, but possible
Why you should care:
Widdel said this is a high-risk time of year since wild birds are often carriers of avian flu.
"And if you have backyard poultry, or you're a small commercial operation, we want you to understand and start taking those biosecurity measures seriously," she said.
That means washing hands and having dedicated clothes and footwear when dealing with chickens. It also means keeping pets like cats away from wild birds and avoiding raw food and milk.
While the risk of transmission to humans is low, it can happen.
The New York Times reported that the CDC posted and then deleted information about two new cases where bird flu was transmitted between pets and people.
"So we want our residents to be safe. So it's being cautious. It's not touching the dead birds, and it's if your animal is sick, getting it to the veterinarian," said Lori Morton-Feazell, San Mateo County Chief of Animal Control and Licensing.
The Source: Interviews with Colleen Crowley of the Peninsula Humane Society and SPCA, San Mateo County Agricultural Commissioner Koren Widdel, and Lori Morton-Feazell, the chief of animal control and licensing for the county.