Owners warned about outbreak of potentially fatal cat disease in Coventry

[dutchman]

Owners are being urged to get their pets vaccinated following the outbreak



A spokesman for Cats Protection’s Coventry branch said: “We’ve been receiving increasing numbers of calls and messages from members of the public who said they’d bought kittens who subsequently became very unwell and died, and then vets across Coventry reported they were seeing lots of feline parvovirus cases.

“So we began monitoring social media, looking for people who were talking about ill cats and kittens. We asked them to contact us with their stories and – with their permission – we shared them with the RSPCA and asked people to also tell the RSPCA about their experiences.

“We heard so many dreadfully sad stories - one lady had lost all of her unvaccinated cats as a result of taking a sick kitten home with her.

“It’s vital cat owners are aware that feline parvovirus is present in the Coventry area and how easily it can be spread by direct and indirect contact with contaminated faeces, such as on food bowls, litter trays and even on your clothes or shoes.

“We urge you to check your cats are vaccinated against this potentially fatal illness - and if not, seek veterinary advice as soon as possible.”

The RSPCA and Cats Protection recommends that all cats receive a full course of vaccinations to protect them against feline parvovirus.

[rebbonk]

The story might have more credibility if they actually cited the areas of the city involved and the actual numbers of cats affected. As it is, it comes across as a scare story encouraging people to spend money getting cats re-vaccinated, possibly unnecessarily so.