EU agency urges pet owners to keep cats and dogs indoors amid rising cases of avian influenza

The European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) has issued a recommendation for cat and dog owners to keep their pets indoors in response to a surge in avian influenza cases worldwide. This guidance comes after 24 cats tested positive for the virus in Poland.

EFSA recommendation

To prevent exposure, EFSA has advised pet owners to avoid contact between domestic cats, dogs, and other carnivorous pets with dead or sick animals.

"Possible measures are keeping dogs on a leash, and confining cats indoors in areas where extensive circulation of HPAI [highly pathogenic avian influenza] viruses in wild birds has been confirmed," it said in a bulletin.

The EFSA's recommendation serves as a precautionary measure to protect pets from avian influenza and mitigate the risk of further transmission.

Italy has reported infections in five dogs and one cat in recent weeks, while Poland has witnessed 24 cases in domestic cats across various regions since June 10.

The exact source of contamination has not yet been determined, but one hypothesis is that the infected animals may have consumed raw poultry meat contaminated with the virus.

A 'bird flu' vaccine for birds

In response to the escalating cases of bird flu, in April, the United States begun testing several vaccine candidates for potential use in birds.

As per AFP, France aims to commence poultry vaccination as early as autumn this year.

However, Christine Middlemiss, the UK's chief veterinary officer, cautioned that vaccination alone is not a definitive solution as the virus continually evolves. In his words, vaccinating poultry was not a "a silver bullet because the virus changes constantly."

Bird flu and humans

Avian influenza, caused by the H5N1 virus, had previously been mostly limited to seasonal outbreaks since its emergence in 1996. However, in mid-2021, a significant change occurred, making the group of viruses much more infectious, according to a World Health Organization (WHO) collaborating centre that studies influenza in animals.

Although rare, humans can contract the avian influenza virus, typically after close contact with infected birds. In recent times, the virus has also been detected in an increasing number of mammals.

On Wednesday, the WHO also issued a warning that the recent surge in bird flu outbreaks among mammals could facilitate the transmission of the virus to humans.

(With inputs from agencies)

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