# HEALTH: cat catches H1N1 flu - un-predicted



## leashedForLife (Nov 1, 2009)

Cat in Iowa had H1N1; may be 1st case in dogs or cats - Paw Print Post: A community for Dog, Cat, and Pet Owners - USATODAY.com

having jumped from birds to swine, + swine to ppl,
this flu has now infected a housecat in Iowa.


----------



## Katie1989 (Sep 30, 2009)

oh god this isnt good i worry enough about me or the people i live with getting swine flu now i have to worry about our dogs getting it


----------



## kcorn (Nov 5, 2009)

Yes, they are working on precautions to protect cats from catching this. Ferrets and other animals have also gotten it.


----------



## leashedForLife (Nov 1, 2009)

hey, kate! :--) 

don;t panic, hon, look at the article - 
the kitty is no spring-chicken, LOL, and is expected to make a full recovery. :thumbup1: just make Sure that if anyone in the family has a cough or sneeze, to use their bent ELBOW to block the droplets flying all over, not their Hands - as hands touch every doggone surface. 

and of course, cover Ur nose/mouth when U cough or sneeze when *alone*, too - the droplets settling on ___ (phone, counter, door-knob, other contact surfaces) easily transfer to anyone touching the surface. 

frequent hand-washing is still the best tool in the cabinet - and NOT touching ones face with the hands, Unless they Have been Washed recently. 
antibacterial soaps are no more effective than ordinary soap - and may accelerate the process of antibacterial resistance, so i go with plain old soap, and get under my nails, too. 

our parents + G-parents went thru the Depression and the 1918 flu - this, too, shall pass. hold on! :--) 
cheers, 
--- terry 

terry pride, APDT-Aus, apdt#1827, CVA, IPDTA, TDF


----------



## kcorn (Nov 5, 2009)

I wonder why no other cats (or so few) have had this?


----------



## tomkitten'ssissy (Sep 28, 2009)

Its the first recorded case right?:shocked:
Don't worry. Only worry if it happens to you, because thats the time to worry.
By you, i mean your animal. I should imagine it's very, very, very, very rare.


----------



## kcorn (Nov 5, 2009)

I am confused about the swine to people comment above. Here is why: there were several swine flu cases in pigs in the USA. After those pigs recovered, they were cleared to be sold as meat products. If there was a risk of transmission, wouldn't they take the safe course and not use those pigs? Also, they weren't kept from people while sick. I can provide more info, if desired.


----------



## leashedForLife (Nov 1, 2009)

post #7 - kcorn

>> I am confused about the swine to people comment... there were several swine flu cases in pigs in the USA. After those pigs recovered, they were cleared to be sold as meat products. <<

OK, this is entirely my lay-person grasp of a complex subject! ;--) 
do not expect a series of graphs or tables or scope-slides, LOL... 
i will just try to explain *my* understanding of this.

this particular FLU Virus was **originally** an avian flu - meaning it affected birds. 
then it mutated, and affected pigs - And *After* it had been in swine for awhile, it AGAIN mutated, and affected ppl.

so this particular strain of flu (there are many!) has jumped the species barrier twice to become H1N1, and has now affected a housecat *and* a ferret - which means this little critter is pretty flexible on target species. this was not anticipated or predicted, because most flu-viruses affect DISCRETE species - unless they mutate, which flu does all of the time - and that is why LAST years seasonal-flu vaccine may be entirely ineffective against THIS years seasonal flu-virus: the strains that are floating around in the human-popn have changed, in that time.

about the pigs: 
------------------------- 
a pig can be sick with the flu, whatever strain it may be, and be _*perfectly SAFE!*_ to eat... cooking to a safe-temp kills the virus stone-dead.

eating pork is safe - working with live-pigs who are stressed and whose immune function is thus compromised, at an auction, being innoculated vs other illness, etc, can expose the person handling the hogs, AND the hogs, to flu or other contagions.

i hope that makes sense? there are lots of technical details, but this is the gist... 
best regards, 
--- terry

terry pride, APDT-Aus, apdt#1827, CVA, IPDTA, TDF 
----------------------------------------------------------------

cooking to kill infectious organisms 
--------------------------------------------- 
BTW, this is ** Not True ** of Prion-Dieases, which includes Chronic Wasting Disease, 
released into the wild by a researcher in the Northwest who kept sheep sick with SCABIES beside wild (captive) whitetail deer. at the end of his research, this eejit turned his deer-subjects LOOSE!, thus introducing an entirely-new variant of a prion disease into healthy wild stock... where it spread, thru whitetail and into elk. the elk are kept as captive herds, in many cases, and are SOLD + SHIPPED across state-lines.

last i heard CWD was in 12 states of the 48 contiguous in the USA. :---( 
cooking, autoclaving, radiation, burning, decay, NOTHING wipes out prions. 
a recent study announced that the CWD-prions are trapped in the clay particles of soil, where plants absorb them + animals ingest them. their conclusion was that this is irreversible - all states with CWD are permanently contaminated, as there is no known method to remove the prions from soils.


----------



## kcorn (Nov 5, 2009)

Thanks for clarifying that  I confess I am now avoiding pork and pork products, probably irrationally. It is an inexpensive meat here.


----------



## leashedForLife (Nov 1, 2009)

happy to help! :--) 

BTW, the k9-flu was originally an equine-flu, which mutated + infected dogs - and as they had zero immunity, as this was a new/novel illness, there were some real panics - some folks were predicting that it would wipe-out a big chunk of the USA-dog-popn. 

luckily, it is only fatal to about 1% of dogs; yes, they get sick, but most healthy dogs go thru it with such mild symps, most never see a vet. the bummer is that about 20% of exposed / infected dogs recover, but become asymptomatic carriers - not affected, but INfecting other dogs. (poop!) 
so if the dog-flu is in Ur area, please think about getting the vax; it may mean nothing in terms of the risk to Ur dog, but as a potential-exposure + contagion for others, it could mean a lot. dog-flu is Not Seasonal, it is year-round. 

try not to fret about *bugs* too much; washing hands well + often is still the BEST single defense, and avoid touching Ur face, especially Eyes, Nose, + Mouth, 
UNLESS U are washing Ur face, blowing Ur nose, etc, or U have recently washed Ur hands (before doing make-up in a public restroom, etc). 

cheers, hope U are well + happy! 
--- terry


----------



## kcorn (Nov 5, 2009)

You have reassured me greatly! My mother survived the SPanish flu, being very elderly and remembering it and I thought that one came from transmitting across species. As you can tell, I am not particularly up on the specifics of all this, seems complex.


----------



## GillyR (Nov 2, 2009)

Just posted about this, am concerned for my pregnant dog..


----------



## leashedForLife (Nov 1, 2009)

i would not panic, just treat the dog like a person - 
do not pet them if U are coughing + sneezing, cover Ur nose/mouth with a Bent ELBOW not a hand, when U cough or sneeze, wash hands often, and after Every Time U blow Ur nose. 

a mask is not very effective with flu-virus, even the fine-particle masks are a bit too coarse to filter the flu. but good handwashing + basic hygiene work well. 
cheers, 
--- terry


----------



## GillyR (Nov 2, 2009)

thanks terry.


----------

