Latest news with #DavidJ.Cennimo
Yahoo
04-03-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
Bird flu leads to pet food recalls as experts urge caution
A Washington company has recalled pet food products amid the ongoing bird flu outbreaks. On March 1, Wild Coast Raw of Olympia, Washington, has recalled its frozen Boneless Free Range Chicken Formula raw pet food for cats, according to a March 1 announcement from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). The product could potentially contain the highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) H5N1, the statement cautioned. Animals who eat contaminated food can contract the virus. New Bird Flu Strain Detected On Poultry Farm As Experts Monitor Mutations The recall affects 16 oz. and 24 oz. sizes of the product. Lot numbers are listed on the FDA's website. The announcement comes days after the Washington State Department of Agriculture (WSDA) warned pet owners that at least two domestic, indoor cats have tested positive for the HPAI strain of bird flu. Read On The Fox News App "One of the cats was euthanized due to the severity of the illness," the WSDA stated in the Feb. 26 announcement. "The second cat is being treated by a veterinarian." Minnesota Declares State Of Emergency As Diseases Cripple Midwestern Farms "This is a difficult situation — we love our pets, and it's devastating when they fall ill," WSDA field veterinarian Dr. Zac Turner said. "If your cat is showing symptoms, consult a veterinarian as soon as possible." Pet owners whose animals ate any of the recalled products should monitor for any bird flu symptoms, including fever, lethargy, low appetite, reddened or inflamed eyes, discharge from the eyes and nose, difficulty breathing, and neurological signs like tremors, stiff body movements, seizure, lack of coordination or blindness, according to the FDA's announcement. Pets with these symptoms should be seen by a veterinarian. "Cats have previously been seen to become infected with bird flu through presumed contact with infected birds," David J. Cennimo, MD, professor of infectious diseases at Rutgers New Jersey Medical School, told Fox News Digital. "More recently, ingesting raw food that was made with chickens or other birds that were infected with avian influenza has resulted in cat infections. This is why raw food poses some danger and should be recalled if contaminated with avian influenza." There have not been cases reported of infections transmitted by cooked bird products, Cennimo noted, "so these remain safe for pets as well as humans." There have been no reports of humans contracting bird flu after handling raw pet food, but there is the potential for transmission if the virus enters the eyes, nose or mouth, the FDA warned. To prevent this, the agency recommends that people wash their hands after handling the raw product and sanitizing contact surfaces such as countertops, refrigerators, bowls or utensils. "People who handled contaminated products should watch for symptoms of bird flu, including eye redness or irritation (conjunctivitis), cough, sore throat, sneezing, runny/stuffy nose, muscle/body aches, headaches, fatigue, fever, trouble breathing, seizures, rash, diarrhea, nausea, and/or vomiting," the FDA recommended. Click Here To Sign Up For Our Health Newsletter "People exhibiting these signs after having contact with this product should contact their healthcare provider and local health department." Experts also recommend that pet owners isolate sick animals and use proper precautions when caring for them. The WSDA advises against feeding raw pet food or raw milk to animals, its announcement stated. "Public health monitors all people exposed to animals infected with HPAI through 10 days following their last exposure," the agency stated. For more Health articles, visit More than 80 domestic cats have been confirmed to have contracted bird flu since 2022, according to KFF Health News. Fox News Digital reached out to Wild Coast Raw requesting article source: Bird flu leads to pet food recalls as experts urge caution
Fox News
03-03-2025
- Health
- Fox News
Bird flu leads to pet food recalls as experts urge caution
A Washington company has recalled pet food products amid the ongoing bird flu outbreaks. On March 1, Wild Coast Raw of Olympia, Washington, has recalled its frozen Boneless Free Range Chicken Formula raw pet food for cats, according to a March 1 announcement from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). The product could potentially contain the highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) H5N1, the statement cautioned. Animals who eat contaminated food can contract the virus. The recall affects 16 oz. and 24 oz. sizes of the product. Lot numbers are listed on the FDA's website. The announcement comes days after the Washington State Department of Agriculture (WSDA) warned pet owners that at least two domestic, indoor cats have tested positive for the HPAI strain of bird flu. "One of the cats was euthanized due to the severity of the illness," the WSDA stated in the Feb. 26 announcement. "The second cat is being treated by a veterinarian." "This is a difficult situation — we love our pets, and it's devastating when they fall ill," WSDA field veterinarian Dr. Zac Turner said. "If your cat is showing symptoms, consult a veterinarian as soon as possible." Pet owners whose animals ate any of the recalled products should monitor for any bird flu symptoms, including fever, lethargy, low appetite, reddened or inflamed eyes, discharge from the eyes and nose, difficulty breathing, and neurological signs like tremors, stiff body movements, seizure, lack of coordination or blindness, according to the FDA's announcement. Pets with these symptoms should be seen by a veterinarian. "Cats have previously been seen to become infected with bird flu through presumed contact with infected birds," David J. Cennimo, MD, professor of infectious diseases at Rutgers New Jersey Medical School, told Fox News Digital. "More recently, ingesting raw food that was made with chickens or other birds that were infected with avian influenza has resulted in cat infections. This is why raw food poses some danger and should be recalled if contaminated with avian influenza." There have not been cases reported of infections transmitted by cooked bird products, Cennimo noted, "so these remain safe for pets as well as humans." There have been no reports of humans contracting bird flu after handling raw pet food, but there is the potential for transmission if the virus enters the eyes, nose or mouth, the FDA warned. To prevent this, the agency recommends that people wash their hands after handling the raw product and sanitizing contact surfaces such as countertops, refrigerators, bowls or utensils. "If your cat is showing symptoms, consult a veterinarian as soon as possible." "People who handled contaminated products should watch for symptoms of bird flu, including eye redness or irritation (conjunctivitis), cough, sore throat, sneezing, runny/stuffy nose, muscle/body aches, headaches, fatigue, fever, trouble breathing, seizures, rash, diarrhea, nausea, and/or vomiting," the FDA recommended. "People exhibiting these signs after having contact with this product should contact their healthcare provider and local health department." Experts also recommend that pet owners isolate sick animals and use proper precautions when caring for them. The WSDA advises against feeding raw pet food or raw milk to animals, its announcement stated. "Public health monitors all people exposed to animals infected with HPAI through 10 days following their last exposure," the agency stated. For more Health articles, visit More than 80 domestic cats have been confirmed to have contracted bird flu since 2022, according to KFF Health News. Fox News Digital reached out to Wild Coast Raw requesting comment.
Fox News
31-01-2025
- Health
- Fox News
New bird flu strain detected on poultry farm as experts monitor mutations
A new strain of bird flu (highly pathogenic avian influenza, or HPAI) has been detected on a duck farm in California. The World Organisation for Animal Health (WOAH) reported the outbreak of the new strain, H5N9, earlier this week on its website. The more common H5N1 strain was also found at the same farm, which is located in Merced County, according to reports. "This is the first confirmed case of HPAI H5N9 in poultry in the United States," WOAH wrote. Health agencies are conducting "comprehensive epidemiological investigations and enhanced surveillance," according to the statement. David J. Cennimo, an associate professor of medicine and pediatrics in the Division of Infectious Diseases at Rutgers New Jersey Medical School, said this new strain could point to the "adaptability" of influenza viruses. "Birds are very susceptible to avian influenza in general. Some strains of the virus are mild, some deadly," he told Fox News Digital. H5N9 has been seen in the past, Cennimo noted, and generally causes mild illness in birds. "The ducks in California, however, were dying," he said. "Genetic testing showed this H5N9 was different from historical samples and was, in fact, a reassortment." (Reassortment is the process by which influenza viruses swap gene segments, according to the National Institutes of Health.) With influenza viruses, scientists name them based on the Hs and Ns (hemagglutinin and neuraminidase surface proteins), according to Cennimo. There are "continual mutations" of flu strains, so not all H1 versions are the same, the doctor said. "This is why humans are getting influenza vaccines yearly, and you will see the strain compositions change some years, even though they remain H1N1 and H3N2," he said. "In this case, the H5 in the H5N9 was the H5 from the currently circulating H5N1 bird flu that is more pathogenic." "While H5N9 is not generally a very dangerous virus, we need to keep an eye on this new strain." With H5N9, he said, the virus appears to have switched its N1 and picked up an N9 from another virus. This can happen when two different viruses simultaneously infect the same animal, he said. "While H5N9 is not generally a very dangerous virus, we need to keep an eye on this new strain," Cennimo cautioned. "To date, I am not aware of any human infections with H5N9. Again, this will be monitored." Dr. Jacob Glanville, CEO of Centivax, a San Francisco biotechnology company, told Fox News Digital, noted that birds are "constantly a reservoir" for many types of influenzas that normally do not infect people. "Researchers monitor them, as the bird flus have evolved to become human global pandemic strains multiple times in the past," he told Fox News Digital. "In order to infect humans, they need to mutate in order to adapt from a bird to human host." Researchers become concerned when there are large outbreaks of bird flus in poultry farms, according to Glanville. In addition to interfering with the food supply, having many infected birds in proximity to pigs, cows and humans greatly increases the risk of mutations that could spill over into "mammalian infections." For more Health articles, visit "Currently, this is the main concern for H5N1," he said. "Other reports of bird flu are worth monitoring but are currently low risk." To date, there have been 67 confirmed cases of human bird flu in the U.S. and one death, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
