A New Deadly, Contagious Dog Flu Virus Is Detected in 7 States

[Dover]

A heads up for those working with evacuated animals, etc.:


A New Deadly, Contagious Dog Flu Virus Is Detected in 7 States

By DONALD G. McNEIL Jr. and CARIN RUBENSTEIN
Published: September 22, 2005

A new, highly contagious and sometimes deadly canine flu is spreading in kennels and at dog tracks around the country, veterinarians said yesterday.

The virus, which scientists say mutated from an influenza strain that affects horses, has killed racing greyhounds in seven states and has been found in shelters and pet shops in many places, including the New York suburbs, though the extent of its spread is unknown.

Dr. Cynda Crawford, an immunologist at the University of Florida's College of Veterinary Medicine who is studying the virus, said that it spread most easily where dogs were housed together but that it could also be passed on the street, in dog runs or even by a human transferring it from one dog to another. Kennel workers have carried the virus home with them, she said.

How many dogs die from the virus is unclear, but scientists said the fatality rate is more than 1 percent and could be as high as 10 percent among puppies and older dogs...cont'd

http://www.nytimes.com/2005/09/22/national/22canine.html?ei=5070&en=6197de8a4f689077&ex=1128052800&adxnnl=1&emc=eta1&adxnnlx=1127509424-/PEDobmlFNQExnlwK5OXOQ

[Straight Shooter]

1. 7 states are Florida, Massachusetts, Arizona, West Virginia, Texas,

Iowa and Wisconsin.

Articles like this make my heart stop beating momentarily. So many viruses, it's bizarre.