California Cats Die After Drinking Unpasteurized Milk

In San Bernardino, California, Joseph Journell lost two of his cats after they drank recalled raw milk. The milk, from Raw Farm in Fresno, was recalled in December due to the risk of bird flu. His 14-year-old tabby, Alexander, and 4-year-old Tuxsie, a tuxedo cat, died within days of drinking the milk. A third cat, Big Boy, became ill and was later diagnosed with the H5N1 bird flu virus after being hospitalized. Journell had been giving his cats the raw milk because he believed it had health benefits. However, he didn't know the milk was contaminated with the bird flu virus. The cats were kept indoors and didn't come into contact with any birds. After the cats got sick, Journell also fell ill and sought treatment but wasn't tested for bird flu. Raw Farm's owner, Mark McAfee, disagrees with the idea that the virus could survive in the milk after bottling. However, experts from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention confirmed that cats can get sick and die from drinking contaminated raw milk. Nearly a dozen cats in California have died from consuming raw milk or raw pet food contaminated with bird flu. Federal and state health officials are warning people not to drink raw milk and to avoid feeding it to pets.