Mystery as CDC posts and deletes terrifying report on pets infecting Americans with ‘pandemic risk’ virus
The CDC posted and swiftly deleted data suggesting bird flu may have spread from pet cats to people.
Both cats in the report died within days of showing symptoms, though it’s unclear what happened to their potentially infected owners.
The chart detailing the cases was posted Wednesday in the CDC’s Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report (MMWR) around 1pm and deleted soon after.
It’s unclear how long the chart remained in the report before it was taken down.
The rest of the report, detailing emergency department visits during the Los Angeles wildfires, remained available.
The chart showed that a teenager and a dairy worker in two households started showing symptoms of H5N1 – bird flu – within days of their cats testing positive for the disease.
While bird flu, which is most common in birds and cattle, has been detected in cats, there were previously no documented cases of it spreading from cats to humans.
The data comes amid a Trump-ordered freeze on communications and reports from health authorities like the CDC.
The CDC posted and deleted data suggesting that cats may be able to spread bird flu to humans (stock image)
The above chart was allegedly released by the CDC accidentally and swiftly deleted. It shows two cases of humans showing bird flu symptoms around the same time as their infected cats
Experts warned that hiding information this potential spread could lead to disastrous consequences for the one in three US households that own cats.
Jennifer Nuzzo, director of the Pandemic Center at the Brown University School of Public Health, told the New York Times: ‘If there is new evidence about H5N1 that is been held up for political purposes, that is just completely at odds with what government’s responsibility is, which is to protect the American people.’
At least 85 domestic cats have been infected with H5N1 since late 2022, according to the US Department of Agriculture (USDA).
It’s believed that most cats become infected by drinking raw milk or eating raw meat, such as from catching wild birds or living on dairy farms.
Late last year, for example, pet food brand Northwest Naturals recalled over 1,000 bags of its raw food after a cat died and it was found to be contaminated with bird flu.
The scrapped data table detailed the potential spread of bird flu from cats to humans in two households.
In the first household, H5N1 symptoms were found in one cat before spreading to another. A teenager in the household then showed symptoms.
The cat tested positive and died four days after first showing symptoms.
In the second household, a cat showed showed symptoms two days after an adult dairy worker. The cat died the next day after testing postitive.
H5N1 leads to issues like seizures, blindness, depression, and trouble breathing in cats and is nearly 100 percent deadly.
Most humans, however, have much milder symptoms like fever, red eyes, muscle aches, and fatigue.
The CDC still maintains that the virus risk to the public is ‘low,’ and there is no evidence that H5N1 can spread from cats to people or from person-to-person.
The current outbreak has infected over 900 dairy herds and 67 people in the US.
Only one American has died, a 65-year-old from Louisiana.
Still, experts have warned that more information is needed on the potential risk infected cats may post to humans.
Dr Diego Diel, a veterinarian and virologist at Cornell University, told The New York Times: ‘Given the number of cats in the US and the close contact with people, there is definitely a need to understand the potential risk.’
