A California man whose two cats died after drinking raw milk recalled for bird flu risk says he meant to keep his beloved pets healthy, but his efforts tragically backfired.
This photo provided by Joseph Journell of San Bernardino, Calif. shows two of his cats, Alexander, background, and Tuxsie, right, who died from bird flu after they drank raw cow's milk. Cleo, center, did not drink the milk and remained healthy.“It’s horrible when you realize that you’re the one that actually gave them the milk that killed them,” said Joseph Journell, 56, of San Bernardino.
The cats drank unpasteurized milk from lots recalled by Raw Farm, of Fresno, whose dairy products were pulled from California store shelves in December after health officials found the virus in milk for sale, he said. The animals’ deaths were confirmed by state and county health officials. The cats were kept indoors, with no access to potentially infected birds, and ate conventional, not raw, pet food, the owner said.
But Richard Webby, an influenza expert at St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital, said flu virus survival likely varies widely in different lots of milk. Experts with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention previously confirmed that cats that drank raw milk from infected cows developed neurological disease and died.5 people injured in Red Deer explosion
Federal and state health officials have warned people not to drink raw milk because of the potential for infection with bird flu and a host of other germs. Officials also have cautioned pet owners to avoid feeding unpasteurized milk and raw meat diets to their animals.“Cats should not be fed any products from affected farms if those products have not been thoroughly cooked or pasteurized to kill the virus,” the FDA warned last month.
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