On Dec. 31, 2024, the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health warned residents not to feed their pets Monarch Raw Pet Food sold at several farmers markets in California due to the detection of the highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) virus in product samples. A house cat that consumed this product tested positive for the virus. Four other house cats from the same household are presumed to have also been positive for HPAI after consuming the product.
“Residents should avoid consumption of all raw milk and raw meat products and not feed these to their pets,” the Department said in a press release.
On Dec. 18, the Department confirmed H5N1 HPAI in four house cats that consumed recalled Raw Farm raw milk. The cats became sick and died. Two infected indoor cats from one household consumed raw milk linked to a recall of raw milk and cream products prior to onset of symptoms. The infected cats died after severe worsening of their illness and subsequently tested positive for HPAI, which the Department later confirmed. Additional pets in the home are under quarantine.
The department then investigated additional possible cases of HPAI in three cats from a different household. One cat tested positive for the influenza virus. Two other cats in the household died after worsening respiratory illness, later confirmed to be HPAI. These cats were not known to be exposed to raw milk. However, public health is investigating other possible sources of infection, including raw meat.
There have been no human cases of bird flu associated with exposure to these cats yet identified.
Oregon cat died after eating avian-influenza-contaminated raw pet food
Also in December of last year, one cat caught highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) virus and subsequently died after eating Northwest Naturals brand 2lb Feline Turkey Recipe raw frozen pet food. Portland, Oregon-based Northwest Naturals recalled one batch of this product after it tested positive for HPAI. As of Dec. 24, no human cases of HPAI have been linked to this incident.
Testing conducted by the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) National Veterinary Services Laboratories (NVSL) and the Oregon Veterinary Diagnostic Laboratory (ODVL) at Oregon State University confirmed that a house cat contracted H5N1 and died after consuming the raw frozen pet food.
“We are confident that this cat contracted H5N1 by eating the Northwest Naturals raw and frozen pet food,” ODA State Veterinarian Dr. Ryan Scholz said in a press release. “This cat was strictly an indoor cat; it was not exposed to the virus in its environment, and results from the genome sequencing confirmed that the virus recovered from the raw pet food and infected cat were exact matches to each other.”
The Oregon Health Authority (OHA) and local public health officials are monitoring household members who had contact with the cat for flu symptoms.
Symptoms of HPAI in cats and humans
Cats infected with H5 bird flu can develop severe illness that may include neurologic signs, respiratory signs or liver disease that can rapidly progress to death, according to the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health.
Symptoms in cats infected with H5N1 bird flu may vary and include:
- Loss of appetite
- Tiredness
- Respiratory and/or neurological signs
Symptoms of H5N1 highly pathogenic avian influenza infection in humans may include:
- Eye redness or discharge
- Cough
- Sore throat
- runny or stuffy nose
- Diarrhea
- Vomiting
- muscle or body aches
- Headaches
- Fatigue
- trouble breathing
- Fever
