By Sumayya

Animal doctors are telling pet owners in parts of eastern Quebec to get their cats vaccinated because of a serious cat illness outbreak.

In the town of Rivière-du-Loup, more than 20 cats have died in just two weeks because a sickness called feline panleukopenia is spreading. One local animal hospital called the situation extremely worrying.

The Hôpital Vétérinaire de Rivière-du-Loup stated last week that the size of this outbreak is unusual and asked everyone to be very careful.

This highly catching disease can make cats sick even if they never go outside. Dr. Valérie Bissonnette, an animal doctor and the leader of Quebec’s veterinarian group, explained that you can just pet an animal, get the virus on your hand, and bring it inside your house if you do not wash your hands well. Then, you can pass the virus to your cat while petting it.

The illness causes terrible swelling in a cat’s stomach area and hurts its immune setup. Bissonnette noted that the death rate is very high, and normally about 90 percent of cats that are not vaccinated or are very young will die from it.

Signs of the sickness include feeling unusually tired, not wanting to eat, weakness, runny poop, throwing up with blood, and a fever.

The finest way to protect your cat from the sickness is to get them their shots and keep them away from other cats. She says you should also avoid taking in new foster cats or watching pets you do not know. She warns that cats who survived the illness can still drop the virus into their surroundings for six weeks after getting better. Because of this, she advises owners not to buy used pet items like litter boxes or food bowls.

Anaël Lapointe, who runs a volunteer, non-profit cat rescue group called Refuge Boule Noire in Rivière-du-Loup, shared that the outbreak has deeply hurt the shelter, causing them to lose some of their foster families.

Following a vet’s advice, the shelter has started a big vaccination drive and has stopped some of its work for a short time. If your cat gets sick, it must be kept away from other cats in your home and taken to the animal doctor immediately.

A sick cat can get very dangerous real fast, but getting supportive care from a doctor greatly helps their chance of living. Cats that have not had their shots but were near the sickness should get the protective vaccine as soon as possible.