Last week a veterinary neurologist in San Francisco diagnosed Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza in a cat, which was the first such case in the Bay Area. It is hard to know if this was an isolated/fluke case, or if this is the start of an outbreak in our area. Since this is an emerging threat, very little is known with certainty, but here are some facts from cases elsewhere in the world over the past 1-2 years. The stakes are high for cats: it causes severe respiratory and neurologic signs (circling, wobbliness, seizures), and has a high mortality rate of 70-90% for them. However, the good news is that it can be prevented simply by 1. avoiding a raw diet 2. keeping your cat indoors (away from birds). Nearly all cases in cats globally have come from eating raw food or drinking raw milk (note that freeze-drying does not kill this pathogen; even commercially sold raw foods are a threat). Luckily, cat-to-human transmission has not been reported, and the clinical signs are mild in most human cases (most cases have been farm workers getting it from chickens or cattle) – although this may change as the virus mutates over time. We will update our announcements page (https://caminorealpetclinic.com/blog/) with any significant developments and recommendations regarding avian influenza as we learn of them.