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Pancytopenia: ‘Heartbreaking’ alert for cat owners as hundreds of pets die from rare illness

A number of cat food brands have been recalled as a precaution after a rise in cats dying from a rare and unexplainable illness.

Some 443 cats have been recently diagnosed with Pancytopenia 284 of who sadly died, ITV News reported.

Pancytopenia is a disease that occurs when a cat has very low white and red blood cell counts and may be caused by anaemia, bleeding, clotting, sepsis, blood cancer, bone cancer and immune system disorders, among other things.

The Royal Veterinary College has described this illness as “heartbreaking” - often affecting young kittens and frequently more than one pet in the same family.

The common potential cause for cats diagnosed with the illness is diet, vets have discovered.

Last week, the Food Standards Agency recalled a number of cat foods, a list of which can be found here.

A number of cat food products have been recalled by the Food Standards Agency, in relation to an increase in cases of feline pancytopenia. Common symptoms include lethargy and unexplained bleeding. If you're worried about your cat, read more information ? https://t.co/yfATW9DREA pic.twitter.com/OZqibfCnUD

— Battersea (@Battersea_) June 30, 2021

A spokesperson for the Food Standards Agency said: “Working with the Royal Veterinary College, the Animal Plant and Health Agency and other government departments across all four nations of the UK, local authorities and the pet food supply chain, we are investigating a possible link between specific cat food products and feline pancytopenia.

“There is no definitive evidence to confirm a link at this stage.

“No unsafe cat food has been identified but the manufacturer and brand owners affected, based on investigations so far, are taking the precautionary action of recalling and withdrawing cat food products that have been linked to affected cats.

“There is no evidence to suggest this outbreak of feline pancytopenia presents any risk to human health.”

Do you own a cat? Then we are reminding you to check if your cat food is affected by a recent product recall.

This is due to a potential link to feline pancytopenia, a serious illness in cats.

The affected cat food products are listed here: https://t.co/s8lE5peTm6

1/6 pic.twitter.com/YPU45tBgCA

— Food Standards Agency (@foodgov) June 25, 2021 

Reference: The Independent: Ella Glover  

Almost 100 vultures found dead in suspected mass poisoning in Spain

Almost 100 vultures have been found dead or dying in a suspected mass poisoning in Spain.

Authorities discovered 56 birds - 55 vultures and a black kite – lying dead, as well as 41 that were alive but so unwell that the prognosis for them was described as bleak.

The birds had been eating the remains of four sheep that had died in a field in the northwestern region of Castilla y Leon.

Experts are investigating whether the poisoning was intentional or whether agricultural chemicals had poisoned the sheep.

Spain is home to 90 per cent of European populations of the protected species, with around 35,000 pairs of griffon and 2,500 pairs of cinereous vultures.

Poison, usually put out to kill foxes and wolves, is the main threat to vultures worldwide, according to an action plan by the UN, drawn up with the support of the Vulture Conservation Foundation.

Environmental agents gave emergency treatment at the site to birds that were still alive to try to save them, but 20 escaped before being captured for treatment, according to Rare Bird Alert.

Those captured still alive were taken to recovery centres for further urgent treatment.

Blood and tissue samples from the carrion and the dead animals were sent to toxicology experts at the University of Murcia so the poison can be analysed.

Based on the findings of a report, in the 25 years from 1992 to 2017, 21,260 animals were officially recorded as being killed in Spain by poison baits, but the real figure is thought to be at least 200,000.

Vultures play a key role in biodiversity, cleaning up carcasses, so helping prevent the spread of disease in wild and domestic animals, and pathogenic risks to humans.

Last week, authorities across Spain agreed a one-year ban on the hunting of turtle doves, sparing an estimated 0.9 million birds that would otherwise be legally shot in the country. 

Reference: Independent : Jane Dalton

Sniffer dog tracks down missing six-year-old girl

A sniffer dog in Tennessee has been praised after finding a six-year-old girl who had been missing for over a month.

The bloodhound, named Fred, tracked the child down to an abandoned shed – where she was found with “barely and food or water” alongside her father, who is accused of kidnapping the youngster.

Posting to Facebook, Rutherford County Sheriff’s Office said the girl’s father, Nicholas Reeder, was charged with child abuse or neglect of his daughter after the pair were discovered. Mr Reeder had lost custody of his daughter, who is now in the care of Tennessee children’s services.

“The door to the outbuilding was barricaded and the windows had been covered up with metal. There was no ventilation and air conditioning inside the small outbuilding,” Dekalb County Sheriff’s Deputy Patrick Ray said.

“There was barely any food or water for the child. The outbuilding had a strong ammonia smell where the two had been urinating and defecating in a five gallon bucket.”

Authorities used Fred the sniffer dog to locate the missing child by giving the animal some of her father’s clothes to smell. Deputies believed the pair were camping in the Pea Ridge community, and Fred managed to follow a trail from the father’s home to where they were hiding out.

Rutherford County Sheriff’s Sgt. James Holloway explained: “Everyone was prepared to stay on scene until the little girl was safely located and out of harm’s way.

“It is an honour to serve alongside some of the most dedicated and highly trained first responders in the country.”

Fred’s handler, K9 Deputy Richard Tidwell said the little girl had given the dog a hug when he found her, and that the animal had been given a reward of chicken for a job well done.

“I praised him and loved on him,” Mr Tidwell said. “I pulled the chicken reward out of my pocket. He ate the chicken and wanted to meet other people as if to say, ‘Look what I’ve done.’” 

Reference: Independent: Harriet Sinclair 

Scientists spot a new type of coronavirus that originated in DOGS

Scientists have discovered a new type of coronavirus which originated in dogs and can infect humans.

The pathogen, which has been around since 2018, is the eighth coronavirus known to have jumped from animals to humans.

It is not yet clear if the bug poses a serious threat like its cousin SARS-CoV-2, which is the name of the virus behind Covid.

But researchers who detected it claim they 'don't see any reason to expect another pandemic from this virus'.

The virus hospitalised eight people in Malaysia, including seven children — the youngest of whom was just five-and-a-half months old.  

Coronaviruses are a family of viruses in the same way that there are several types of influenza. 

They are named for the distinctive appearance of their spikes; when seen under a powerful microscope, the spikes look like a crown (corona is the Latin for ‘crown’). 

Beneath these spikes is a layer of membrane. This membrane can be disrupted by detergents and alcohols, which is why soap and water and alcohol hand sanitiser gels are effective against the virus.

Coronaviruses are expected to become more frequent as humans come into more contact with wildlife due to habitat destruction and climate change. 

Covid is the disease caused by SARS-CoV-2 but there are six other coronaviruses that have been found in humans.

Its origin has been linked to bats and pangolins but theories that it was leaked from a laboratory have not yet been ruled out. 

Four of the human coronaviruses cause colds, which are relatively harmless. The two others cause Sars and Mers, which are both deadly. 

Researchers at Duke University and Ohio State University named the new coronavirus CCoV-HuPn-2018.

It is believed to have first transmitted to humans from dogs. Sars is believed to have come from bats originally, while Mers was transmitted to humans from camels.  

Seven of the eight patient who were hospitalised with the virus in Malaysia were children, with one was just five and a half months old. One developed pneumonia but all recovered and were discharged after four to six days, following oxygen therapy to help them breathe.

But the discovery suggests coronaviruses can be transmitted by domestic pets and underlines their danger.

Experts say the study, published in Clinical Infectious Diseases, could revolutionise how we identify respiratory diseases before they become potential pandemics. 

Co-author Dr Anastasia Vlasova, of The Ohio State University, said: 'At this point, we don't see any reasons to expect another pandemic from this virus. 

'But I can't say that's never going to be a concern.'

The US team identified the novel canine coronavirus using the same molecular diagnostic tool they created last year to detect Covid.

Project leader Professor Gregory Gray, of Duke University, North Carolina, said: 'How common this virus is, and whether it can be transmitted efficiently from dogs to humans or between humans, nobody knows.

'What is more important is these coronaviruses are likely spilling over to humans from animals much more frequently than we know.

'We are missing them because most hospital diagnostic tests only pick up known human coronaviruses.'

He analysed the archived nasal swabs of 301 people treated in a hospital in Sarawak in East Malaysia in 2018. 

Dr Vlasova grew the virus in her lab from one of the clinical specimens, which came from a child.

By reconstructing its genome, they were able to confirm it came from a dog.

It evolved from a coronavirus that afflicts dogs to infect humans and may contribute to respiratory symptoms.

Dr Gray said: 'There are probably multiple canine coronaviruses circulating and spilling over into humans that we don't know about.'

Sarawak could be a rich place to detect them since it is an equatorial area with rich biodiversity.

He added: 'Many of those spillovers are dead ends, they don't ever leave that first human host.

'But if we really want to mitigate the threat, we need better surveillance where humans and animals intersect, and among people who are sick enough to get hospitalised for novel viruses.'

Diagnostic tools like his have the potential to identify other viruses new to humans before they can cause a pandemic.

He said: 'These pathogens don't just cause a pandemic overnight, it takes many years for them to adapt to the human immune system and cause infection, and then to become efficient in human-to-human transmission.

'We need to look for these pathogens and detect them early.'

The researchers plan to further study the CCoV-HuPn-2018 virus to determine how harmful it is or could become.

It is unknown if the virus can be passed from person to person or how well the human immune system can fight it off.

Dr Vlasova said: 'We don't really have evidence right now that this virus can cause severe illness in adults.'

She pointed out only one of the infected patients was an adult.

But she said: 'I cannot rule out the possibility that at some point this new coronavirus will become a prevalent human pathogen. Once a coronavirus is able to infect a human, all bets are off.'

When a virus alters its genetic makeup enough to go from infecting an animal to people, a combination of factors determine how well it replicates and spreads.

It must first enter the human body and recognise something on the surface of the cells, then bind to them.

Dr Vlasova said: 'We know this virus can do that.'

'The sampling has to be repeated and done over a period time to see how many people become infected.'

She added: 'If you had mentioned this 20 years ago, that a virus that affects dogs could change to be able to infect people, many would have been sceptical.'

But it may not be necessary for people to change how they interact with their dogs.

Dr Vlasova said: 'But I would definitely be watching a little more how much I allow my babies around dogs.'

The virus causes different symptoms in dogs, including gastrointestinal problems. Infected people experience a respiratory illness.

Dr Gray said: 'We are likely missing important animal viruses that are beginning to adapt to humans.

'We need to conduct such virus discovery work among people with pneumonia and also among people who have intense exposure to animals so that we get early warning of a new virus which may become a future pandemic virus.'

The potential threat posed by the viruses of dogs or cats, which also suffer illnesses from coronaviruses, has not been studied widely.

It should be, said Dr Vlasova. Monitoring animal viruses is a way of protecting public health.

She added: 'We primarily put the emphasis on studying emerging disease in humans — not animals. That is a big flaw in the current approach.'

Reference: Daily Mail: Joe Davies For Mailonline  21/05/2021