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Twenty big cats, including a Bengal tiger and four mountain lions, have died from bird flu in recent weeks at an animal sanctuary in Washington state.
“This tragedy has deeply affected our team and we are all mourning the loss of these incredible animals,” the Wild Felid Advocacy Center of Washington wrote in a Facebook post.
The devastating viral infection, transmitted by wild birds, spreads primarily through respiratory secretions and contact between birds and can also be contracted by mammals that ingest birds or other products.
The sanctuary is under quarantine and closed to the public to prevent the spread of the virus, according to the statement.
The animals died between late November and mid-December, sanctuary director Mark Mathews told The Associated Press. New York Times.
“We’ve never had anything like this; they usually die basically of old age,” he said. “It’s not something like this, it’s a pretty wicked virus.”
The news comes as bird flu continues to spread among cattle and poultry in the US, while seriously infecting at least one human.
The sanctuary said it had lost five African serval cats, four lynxes, two Canada lynxes and a Bengal tiger, among others. Currently there are only 17 cats left at the Center.
“Cats are particularly vulnerable to this virus, which can cause subtle initial symptoms but progresses rapidly, often resulting in death within 24 hours due to pneumonia-like conditions,” the sanctuary said in its report. facebook statement on Friday.
Bird flu has long infected poultry in the United States. But the virus first began infecting livestock in the United States in March.
And since April 2024, a total of 61 human cases of bird flu have been reported in the US, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
The CDC says the risk to the general public remains low and there has been no sustained person-to-person transmission.
Most have reported mild symptoms, although one person was taken to the hospital with a severe case of bird flu in Louisiana this month.
Last week, California Governor Gavin Newsom declared an emergency over the outbreak among the state’s dairy cows to help the government have the “resources and flexibility it needs to quickly respond to this outbreak.”