NEW YORK (1010 WINS) – Two cats from separate households in New York City were infected with bird flu, city health officials said Friday as they investigated the source of the infections.
The city’s acting health commissioner, Dr. Michelle Morse, said in a statement that the city is working with animal health officials at the state and federal level to investigate how two separate cats were infected with H5 avian influenza, the virus that causes bird flu.
The fate of the two cats wasn't immediately known.
“The current risk to New Yorkers of bird flu remains low,” Morse said. “Bird flu viruses present a wider risk to the general public only if the virus develops the ability to transmit between people — which we have not seen.”
Morse urged pet owners to avoid feeding their pets raw food or raw milk and to prevent their cats from roaming outdoors where they may encounter wild birds and other animals.
Bird flu in cats has been confirmed elsewhere in the U.S. There have been dozens of human cases in the U.S. in recent months as well, and a person in Louisiana died from the virus in January after animal-to-human exposure. No human-to-human transmission has been identified.
In the city, multiple birds have tested positive for bird flu at city parks. Birds have also tested positive at city zoos and at live poultry markets in multiple boroughs, including the Bronx, Brooklyn and Queens.
Bird flu is extremely contagious among birds and has led to the culling of more than 35 million birds nationwide this year, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture. The culling has caused higher egg prices and egg shortages across the nation, with NYC bodegas getting creative to deal with the price surge.