# 2185
Today we are seeing what appears to be damage control coming out of South Korea regarding the H5N1 infected cat announced yesterday. I use the term `damage control' because it is a euphemism that almost everyone understands.
The assertions in the article below are so blatantly misleading, so contrary to the facts, that one must wonder who is at fault here. The Korean spokesperson, or the reporter.
I've highlighted the most egregious statements in red.
SKorea cat had bird flu: officials
SEOUL (AFP) — A cat found dead in a South Korean city was infected with a virulent strain of bird flu, the first mammal in the country known to have had the H5N1 virus, health officials said on Tuesday.
They said it was the first report of a cat having had the virus since a case in Thailand in 1996, but that there was little risk to humans as there has never been a known transmission of the virus from a cat to other mammals.
"It is quite rare for a cat to be infected by the avian flu virus," said Cho Hyun-Ho, a deputy director of the National Veterinary Research and Quarantine Service.
Cats and dogs are usually not susceptible to the virus, so quarantine officials only normally check animals that have regular contact with birds.
First known cat infection in 12 years. Very rare occurrence. Dogs and cats are not generally susceptible . . .
Very comforting.
Nothing to see here folks. Move along. You can go back to sleep. Sorry to have bothered you.
Since I don't know the motivation behind these misstatements (although I can certainly guess), I'll skip over my righteous indignation (for now) and simply provide some `conflicting' data.
Notice that none of these examples go back to 1996. Where they got that date, I can't even begin to imagine.
(The bolding and highlighting of passages in the following articles is mine)
First there's this, from the WHO (World Health Organization).
H5N1 avian influenza in domestic cats
28 February 2006
Authorities in Germany have today announced detection of H5N1 avian influenza in a domestic cat. The cat was found dead over the weekend on the northern island of Ruegen. Since mid-February, more than 100 wild birds have died on the island, and tests have confirmed H5N1 infection in several.
<snip>
Experimental studies, published in September 2004, demonstrated that the H5N1 virus can infect domestic cats, and that cats can transmit the virus to other cats. In these experiments, the cats developed disease following direct inoculation of virus isolated from a fatal human case, and following the feeding of infected raw chicken.
<snip>
Several published studies have demonstrated H5N1 infection in large cats kept in captivity. In December 2003, two tigers and two leopards, fed on fresh chicken carcasses, died unexpectedly at a zoo in Thailand. Subsequent investigation identified H5N1 in tissue samples.
In February 2004, the virus was detected in a clouded leopard that died at a zoo near Bangkok. A white tiger died from infection with the virus at the same zoo in March 2004.
In October 2004, captive tigers fed on fresh chicken carcasses began dying in large numbers at a zoo in Thailand. Altogether 147 tigers out of 441 died of infection or were euthanized. Subsequent investigation determined that at least some tiger-to-tiger transmission of the virus occurred.
And of course, we have this article from the New Straits Times from the summer of 2006. Notice that the statement comes from a WHO medical officer.
Indonesian cat found infected with bird flu virus
19 Jun 2006
Amy Chew in Jakarta
JAKARTA, INDONESIA, MON:
A CAT has been found infected with the deadly H5N1 virus in Indonesia, in the first such case in the country.
Steven Bjorge, Medical Officer for Communicable Disease of the World Health Organisation said the cat was infected after having eaten contaminated birds.
“We have evidence from one cat in Indonesia that has already been infected by this virus,” he told Jakarta’s Foreign Correspondents’ Club.
Yesterday’s disclosure came just days after Indonesia confirmed its 38th death from avian influenza caused by the H5N1 virus, placing the country in second place behind Vietnam’s 42 deaths.(link no longer active)
And then there's this from the Veterinary Sciences Tomorrow journal.
24 March 2006
Infection of cats with H5N1 Avian Influenza Virus
Compiled by Etienne Thiry (Liege/B), with the assistance of Diane Addie (Glasgow/UK), Herman Egberink (Utrecht/NL), Katrin Hartmann (Munich/D), Hans Lutz (Zurich/CH) and Hervé Poulet (Lyon/F).
Introduction
The H5N1 subtype of Avian Influenza Virus type A, a member of the Orthomyxoviridae family, occurs primarily in birds. Transmission to mammals happens sporadically, and the infection then may cause disease with a high morbidity and a high number of deaths among ill animals. Humans, primates, rodents, lagomorphs, mustelids and felids, including the domestic cat may be infected and may succumb to the disease. A listing of susceptible species is given HERE .
Infection of cats
Felids can be naturally and experimentally infected with H5N1 virus.
In February 2004, infection of household cats was reported from Thailand (WHO, 2004); also from that country, two outbreaks of fatal disease in tigers and leopards have been published (Keawcharoen et al., 2004; Thanawongnuwech et al., 2005).
In February/March 2006, three cats were found dead on the island of Rügen, Germany and infection with H5N1 virus was established by laboratory tests.
Also in March 2006, three cats were found infected but alive in an animal shelter in Graz, Austria. - First experimental evidence for the pathogenicity of H5N1 avian influenza virus for the domestic cat was obtained by Kuiken et al. (2004).
And then there is this from the FAO (UN's Food & Agriculture Agency).
Avian influenza in cats should be closely monitored
So far no sustained virus transmission in cats or from cats to humans
8 February 2007, Rome - Cats can become infected with the highly lethal H5N1 avian influenza virus, but at present there is no scientific evidence to suggest that there has been sustained transmission of the virus in cats or from cats to humans, FAO said in a statement today.
As a precautionary measure, FAO recommended that in areas where the H5N1 virus has been found in poultry or wild birds, cats should be separated from infected birds until the danger has passed. On commercial poultry premises cats should even be kept indoors.
The agency advised against killing cats as a virus control option because there is nothing to suggest that cats are transmitting the virus in a sustained way. Removing cats could lead to a surge in rodents such as rats, which are an agricultural pest and often transmit diseases to humans.
Unconfirmed reports that H5N1 infection has been detected in a high prevalence in cats in Indonesia has caused some alarm. The scavenging cats were sampled in the vicinity of poultry markets in Java and Sumatra where outbreaks of H5N1 avian influenza had recently occurred.
This is not the first time that cats have been infected as previous incidents in Thailand, Iraq, the Russian Federation, the European Union and Turkey show. Cats can become infected by feeding on sick domestic or wild birds; they can develop severe to fatal disease and excrete the virus from the respiratory and digestive tracts.
There are more examples I could cite - including the work of Dr. C.A. Nidom in Indonesia. Or the reports of H5N1 infection in dogs in the CDC's Journal of Emerging Infectious Diseases.
But I think I've made my point.
Why any of this information should be (pick one) ignored, glossed over, or suppressed is beyond me.
Cats and dogs, along with other mammals, are susceptible to the H5N1 virus. We honestly don't know how often infection occurs. But it probably happens more often than we are aware of.
Thus far, we've seen no indication of cat-to-human infection. More research is needed so that we can fully understand the role that mammals may play in the spread of the H5N1 virus.
Is this information so scary that it can't be readily admitted? Is the public so immature, so easily frightened, that it can't handle the truth?
Obviously some people think so.
