West Coast public health authorities have issued a warning to pet owners after a house cat in Oregon died from bird flu. The Oregon Department of Agriculture confirmed Tuesday that the cat, which they said was “strictly indoor,” contracted the virus after eating Northwest Naturals raw turkey. The pet food company has since issued a voluntary recall of the product. The Los Angeles County Public Health Department also confirmed that four cats in California died after contracting H5N1. They believe the cats were exposed to the virus through recalled raw milk. Another three potential cases of H5N1 in house cats are currently under investigation. The warning comes just one day after the county recorded its first case of H5N1 in a human. The patient experienced “mild symptoms” and was already recovering at home, the LA Public Health Department said in a separate statement. The department still believes that the virus poses a low overall risk to the public and has no evidence of person-to-person spread.
