In briefA seal, a dolphin and a fox have tested positive for H5 bird flu in South Australia.Experts share advice on protecting pets and wildlife as the outbreak grows.<\/p>\n
Bird flu has begun its spread beyond birds in Australia, with cases confirmed in three different mammal species since last weekend. <\/p>\n
On Friday, Australia’s chief veterinary officer, Beth Cookson, said H5 bird flu had been confirmed in a red fox found in metropolitan Adelaide, marking the first in a land mammal in Australia. <\/p>\n
A dead dolphin found on South Australia’s Fleurieu Peninsula also tested positive this week, days after a long-nosed fur seal<\/a> found dead at Beachport became the country’s first mainland mammal case. <\/p>\n How does bird flu spread in mammals?<\/p>\n Bird flu has been detected in many different mammals on other continents, including cats and dogs, farm animals, dolphins, seals, foxes, tigers, leopards and polar bears.<\/p>\n Your trusted source for staying up-to-date with the world around you. Get free daily news updates and analysis, straight to your inbox.<\/p>\n Infected birds spread the virus through droppings, feathers and other bodily fluids. It can also be transmitted via contaminated clothing, footwear, equipment and vehicles. <\/p>\n Under favourable conditions, the virus can survive in the environment for months, Australian government authorities have said.<\/p>\n While the virus primarily spreads from infected birds, there is evidence it can also spread between some mammals, including during outbreaks in seals and dairy cattle overseas.<\/p>\n READ MORE<\/p>\n Among scavengers like foxes and cats, infections have been linked to eating or interacting with bird carcasses.<\/p>\n Cookson said there was no evidence of mammal-to-mammal transmission of the virus in Australia.<\/p>\n “This detection in a fox is a good reminder that people and their pets should avoid sick or dead wildlife,” Cookson said on Friday.<\/p>\n READ MORE<\/p>\n “Although this is a concerning development, it is not unexpected given that H5 bird flu has been detected in other wildlife in areas where there are high levels of infection in wild birds.”<\/p>\n She said the risk to human health remains low.<\/p>\n Which Australian mammals are most at risk?<\/p>\n The government’s H5 bird flu risk assessment ranks multiple dolphin, seal and sea lion species among Australia’s most vulnerable native mammals, and experts fear the virus could have devastating consequences for endangered species such as the Australian sea lion.<\/p>\n Seal populations around the world have proved particularly vulnerable<\/a> to bird flu outbreaks.<\/p>\n READ MORE<\/p>\n The virus decimated southern elephant seal populations on Heard Island after reaching the Australian sub-antarctic territory<\/a> last year, killing an estimated 75 per cent of pups. <\/p>\n Jane Younger, senior lecturer in Southern Ocean vertebrate ecology at the University of Tasmania, said it was “devastating news for wildlife” that bird flu had been detected in a mainland Australian mammal.<\/p>\n “My biggest concern now is the endangered Australian sea lion, which is found nowhere else in the world,” she said.<\/p>\n “Infected and dying seabirds have already been found at important sea lion breeding sites around Kangaroo Island. If the virus enters a breeding colony, there is no way to stop it spreading.”<\/p>\n She called for intensive surveillance of seal and sea lion colonies, rapid genome sequencing of mammal cases and an urgent investigation of whether targeted vaccinations could help protect certain populations.<\/p>\n South Australian Environment Minister Emily Bourke said last week that her state would assess the possibility of importing an experimental US vaccine for use among mammals in Australia, but warned that vaccines for mammals such as cattle and cats being developed overseas are yet to be approved by authorities.<\/p>\n The use of vaccines in birds is further advanced, with Australian officials saying last year that a H5 vaccine had been procured and authorised for use in particular rare, protected or valuable bird populations. <\/p>\n Victoria is currently vaccinating thousands of little penguins, which are a popular tourist attraction.<\/p>\n Should we be worried about our cats and dogs?<\/p>\n Bird flu infections have been reported in domestic cats and dogs overseas, though the Australian government says such infections are uncommon and usually occur through contact with infected birds.<\/p>\n Symptoms may include fever, lethargy, decreased appetite, red or inflamed eyes, discharge from eyes and nose, coughing and sneezing, and tremors. <\/p>\n Cat owners should be particularly mindful, Robyn Alders, an animal influenza expert and honorary professor at the Australian National University’s Crawford School of Public Health, told SBS News.<\/p>\n Overseas, cats infected with the virus have experienced a high mortality rate.<\/p>\n READ MORE<\/p>\n She suggests keeping cats indoors, especially in areas where bird flu cases have been confirmed, and keeping dogs on a leash when walking.<\/p>\n The virus can also be spread through contaminated food and water, so experts recommend keeping pets’ bowls inside or out of reach of wild birds.<\/p>\n Australians visiting wetlands, beaches, farms or wildlife areas are advised to observe wildlife from a distance, avoid contact with sick or dead animals, and to clean footwear and equipment with detergent or disinfectant.<\/p>\n Alders suggests that pet owners who go for walks in areas where sick or dead animals have been found could consider keeping a separate pair of walking shoes that they always disinfect.<\/p>\n For the latest from SBS News, download our app<\/a> and subscribe to our newsletter<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"In briefA seal, a dolphin and a fox have tested positive for H5 bird flu in South Australia.Experts…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":41094,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[8],"class_list":["post-41093","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-news","tag-health"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/health\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/41093","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/health\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/health\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/health\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/health\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=41093"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/health\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/41093\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/health\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/41094"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/health\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=41093"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/health\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=41093"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/health\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=41093"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}