How to protect your pets

Michigan is a national hot spot for bird flu, and pet owners should be aware of the potential risks, veterinarians warn.

Called highly pathogenic avian influenza, the H5N1 bird flu virus making headlines in Michigan and across the U.S. got its name because it is so well adapted to infecting and killing birds. The current H5N1 strain is almost always deadly in poultry, but produces a puzzling array of symptoms in other animals — including those commonly kept as pets, especially cats.

Cats are extremely susceptible to the H5N1 bird flu and are at risk of developing neurological symptoms and dying. Barn cats that drank raw milk from sick cows also were infected with bird flu and developed neurological symptoms, eye and nose discharge; many died.

New research suggests ferrets get extremely sick, too, and can die from the virus.

While dogs can get infected by the H5N1 bird flu, reports of illness among dogs are rare. When they get sick, the symptoms have been mild, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported earlier this month.

Veterinarians urge pet owners to ensure their cats and dogs don't hunt birds or scavenge the carcasses of birds or other animals to avoid the risk of infection. They also should avoid contact with other infected animals, such as cows and poultry and unpasteurized milk.

Here are some tips from the World Organisation for Animal Health to protect your pets — especially cats — from the bird flu:

• Where possible, avoid direct contact with sick poultry, fallenwild birds, objects with traces of bird droppings, or surfaces orwater sources (e.g.: ponds, troughs, lakes) that might becontaminated with saliva, feces, or bodily fluids from birds.
• Upon returning home, ensure that your shoes are kept out ofreach of pets.
• After coming home from outdoor areas that may have birddroppings, clean your shoes.
• Disinfect the surface where you placed your shoes.
• Follow regular hygiene practices, such as washing hands withwarm water and soap, particularly after returning home andbefore handling food.
• Maintain hygienic conditions while preparing meals.
• Avoid feeding pets raw poultry meat, particularly if avianinfluenza outbreaks are reported in the region.