French cat owners panicking over bird flu

Some cat owners in France were panicking today that their pets might catch lethal bird flu, bombarding the animal protection society with anxious calls after a dead cat in Germany tested positive for the lethal H5N1 strain of avian influenza.

“We are getting calls from cat owners wanting to know if there are risks, people who are panicking and wondering what they should do with their cats, and people who are abandoning their cats,” said the association’s president, Serge Belais.