Feline Infectious Disease Control

Maggie Roberts BVM&S MRCVS

Director of Veterinary Services

Reg Charity 203644 (England and Wales) and SCO37711 (Scotland)

Cats ProtectionWhat Do We Do?

•UK only charity

Education•Public •Veterinary Profession•Others in animal welfare

Neutering•Early Neutering•Financial assistance•Ferals

Rehoming•Reuniting owned animals•Accepting strays and handed in cats•Rehabilitate and rehome

Today's Talk - Overview

Why are infectious diseases a problem?

A few specific cases Cat ‘flu Feline Parvovirus Ringworm FeLV FIV

How we contain disease

What makes cats different?

Cats were originally solitary hunters.Not evolved to live in close proximity with other cats.Cats can be carriers of disease without showing symptoms

Why do cats in shelters get sick?

Immune System!!! Stress Host susceptibility Transient population Different bugs from

different places Shelter environment

factors Population density

Disease transmission

Direct (from cat to cat)Saliva e.g. FeLV Sneezing e.g. cat ‘flu Fighting e.g. FIV Rubbing e.g. Ringworm

Indirect (from people or objects)Pens e.g. RingwormLitter trays e.g. CoronavirusFood bowls e.g. FeLVPeople’s hands, shoes etc e.g. Parvovirus

Cat ‘flu

What is it?

Feline herpesvirus (FHV)Feline calicivirus (FCV)Chlamydophila felisBordetella bronchiseptica

Cat ‘fluClinical Signs

Sneezing Runny nose and eyes Conjunctivitis Ulcers High temperature Quiet and subdued Loss of appetite Dribbling A cough or loss of voice Gingivo-stomatitis Lameness

Feline herpesvirus

Feline rhinotracheitis virus Who’s got herpes? Cats will be lifelong ‘carriers’

Virus shedding Shedding may last up to 14 days Virus survives in environment for only

18hrs Spread by direct and indirect

contact

Infectious Diseases – Cat ‘flu

Feline herpesvirus

Feline herpesvirus

Feline calicivirus

Constantly mutates – clever! Virus survives in the environment for up to 10d Spread by direct and indirect contact Cats can become ‘carriers’

50% still shedding 75 days after infection Most cats stop shedding 1 year after infection Some will be lifelong carriers - without symptoms!

20-30% of cat population estimated tobe shedding

Infectious Diseases – Cat ‘flu

Feline calicivirus

Feline calicivirus (VSD)

New strain known as ‘Virulent Systemic Disease’ Swelling of head and paws Flu signs Jaundice Bleeding from nose and bowel Death

All ages can get it Even vaccinated cats

VSD

Chlamydophilosis

A bacteria Likes to piggy back on viruses Got to treat it right or it sticks around Easy to kill in environment Spread by direct contact only

Infectious Diseases – Cat ‘flu

Feline chlamydophilosis

Cat ‘flu

What do you do??

VACCINATE

Isolate and barrier nurseGood nursing careCan’t kill the virusAntibiotics for secondary infectionsPain reliefDecongestantsReduce stressSpecific testing may not be necessary?

Infectious diarrhoea

Causes

Viral agentsParvovirusCoronavirus

Bacterial agentsCampylobacterSalmonellaE Coli

WormsRoundwormsTapeworms

Protozoan agentsGiardiaCoccidiaTritrichomonas foetus

Feline Parvovirus

Also known as:parvo enteritispanleucopenia

What is it?VirusBad newsSpread between cats by direct or indirect contact with contaminated faecesSurvives in the environment a long time

Feline Parvovirus

Clinical SignsSudden death with no signsLack of appetiteHigh temperatureWeight lossSevere vomitingSevere diarrhoea with

blood and mucusDehydration

Feline Parvovirus

Greatest disease threat to any rescue

facilityVery high death rate, particularly in

unvaccinated kittens

Feline Parvovirus

Diagnosis

Kitten post mortem Blood test Faecal sample

Feline ParvovirusWhat do you do?

VACCINATE

Isolate and barrier nurse Good nursing care Can’t kill a virus Fluids (oral or I/V) Antibiotics for secondary infections Vaccinate in face of outbreak Use the right disinfectants

Infectious Diseases - Ringworm

Ringworm

What is it? A fungus known as a dermatophyte It’s not gonna kill anyone, so why is it a big

problem?

Ringworm

Clinical Signs

Hair loss Crusting and scaling Itching Can mimic other skin diseases Can look like anything – or nothing

Infectious Diseases - Ringworm

Ringworm

REMEMBER RINGWORM IS A ZOONOTIC DISEASE

Ringworm

Diagnosis Woods lamp Hair culture

RingwormWhat do you do? Isolate and barrier nurse: spores Oral medication

Itraconazole (Itrafungol; Janssen) for 5 week course

Topical treatments Miconazole shampoo (Malaseb; VetXX),

Enilconazole (Imaverol; Janssen), Lime sulphur

If long haired may need clipping Use the right disinfectants

RingwormCP says:

3 CLEAR CULTURES BEFORE HOMING

Things to Remember: Ringworm spores can survive up to 2 years Appropriate disinfectants are: Bleach or Virkon

(Peroxygen compound) Steam cleaning

FeLV

What is it? Feline Leukaemia Virus A retrovirus ‘Friendly’ disease spread If mum has it – all kittens will too Only survives for a few hours in the environment Cats may be infected but be

asymptomatic for some time

FeLV

Clinical SignsRecurrent secondary infectionsHigh temperatureLethargyCancerous tumoursAnaemiaUsually young-middle aged cats

Photo courtesy of Fort Dodge Animal Health

FeLV

What do you do? In house test e.g. Idexx snap test Confirm positive results

FeLV

What do you do? Isolate suspected cases and barrier nurse Test all in contact cats 85% of infected cats die within 3 years of

infection CP euthanase confirmed FeLV positive

cats

FIVWhat is it?Feline Immunodeficiency virusA retrovirus‘Fighting’ disease spread by biting and fightingIf mum has it 1/3 of kittens will become infectedOnly survives for a few hours in the environmentOften middle- aged cats

FIV

Clinical Signs Everything!! Recurrent secondary infections Weight loss High temperature Lethargy Gingivitis Diarrhoea Neurological disease Skin disease

FIV

What do you do?Test all in contact catsSeparate CP PolicyIndoor homeEuthanasia for positive ferals and sick positive cats

FeLV/FIV

Ideal to test everyone – cost issue

Which cats do CP test?Sick catsUnneutered adult tomsPregnant queensNursing queensKittens of FIV positive queensOrphan kittens Feral catsStray catsCats going communal areaAny cat known to have been in contact Any cat the vet is suspicious ofAny cat before it undergoes extensive treatment or surgery

FeLV and FIV in the shelter

Virus does not survive long in the environment

Usually needs direct contact (grooming, fighting) to be transmitted

Housing singly and using good hygiene is sufficient

Containing disease

Why know about the bugs??

What’s a Fomite?

We are the major source of infection transmission!!

Containing Disease

Personal Protective Equipment Apron Gloves Oversuit Sleeves Overshoes Hat or hood on oversuit Mask? Goggles?

Idea is all items should be disposable

Containing Disease

Keep infected cat isolated from all other cats

Wear and use Personal Protective Equipment (PPE)

Use suitable disinfectant that is effective against the disease

Clean and handle infected cat last

Containing disease Have separate cleaning utensils for

isolated cat Use disposable litter trays and food bowls

or return trays and bowls to same cat

Containing Disease

Use disposable bedding or soak in disinfectant before washing on hot cycle

Wash contaminated bedding last and separate from other bedding

Use footbaths containing disinfectant

Containing disease

Deep clean area for 5 continuous days after housing infected cat

Steam clean first if possible

Stop the movement of cats in or out

Disease prevention

Avoid over-crowding Keep cats singly or only with cats from the

same source Use full height sneeze barriers Quarantine new arrivals and isolate sick

cats

Disease prevention

Reduce stress as much as possible Health check by a vet Screen for disease where possible Good preventative medicine

Vaccination

Core - essential in all rescue facilities as a minimum

FHV FCV FPV Rabies in endemic

area

Vaccination

Non-core – depends on risk, funds available FeLVChlamydophila felisBordetella bronchiseptica

Thank You!