Meet Leonardo DiCaprio, the only Colorado cat to defeat the bird flu

Highland Ranch, Colorado – According to the Colorado Department of Agriculture (CDA), Avian influenza has been detected in 11 cats. Only one survived.

His name is Leonardo DiCaprio, a five-year-old sphinx cat who lives on Highland Ranch. He goes for short with Leo.

Kamille, JJ, and Steve Werfelmand adopted Leo near the end of 2020. The family said he would act more like a dog than a cat.

“He's still doing cats, he'll knock out the counter and everything, but he wants to be around people all the time,” Steve said.

Leo is considered a family star, Social Media Accounts It is dedicated to hairless cats. The family quickly noticed that near the end of January, something was completely invisible.

“I was coming home from college for a bit and putting him in a new sweater and he was acting really weird about the new sweater,” Kamille said. “I said, 'Mama, I don't know, something looks a little bit away. I don't know why he's acting like this. He doesn't usually act like this because of the sweater.”

“He was really lethargic and I realized it was really hot. He had a fever. When I was at work, I was really worried about him so my parents came over to him and had him check it out all day,” JJ said. “Finally, I decided I needed to take him to the vet, then I took him to the vet and they ran a lot of tests.”

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Leo was sent home from his first visit to the veterinarian after receiving subcutaneous fluid. Verfelmans said his health had not improved once again after returning home, so they took him to the vet again.

“When we took him the second time, he barely responded. He stayed there two nights,” JJ said.

“They put him in IV hydration and I think this was one of the things that saved him,” Steve said.

The family believes the answer really came when asked about what Leo was eating.

“He ate raw chicken savage pet food. They ran the test and sent it straight away to CSU. “The cat was dead so I was worried that he might die.”

“At first I didn't know much about bird flu, so I thought it was in birds and eggs. I never thought I could have a cat,” Kamille said.

Highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI H5N1) affects both indoor and outdoor cats in Colorado, according to the CDA. The state reports that cats are “very susceptible to avian flu,” causing death in most cases.

According to the CDA, “Hivers can be infected with the avian flu if they are infected with the avian flu virus, or exposed to an environment contaminated with dead birds, or infected birds, or exposed to dead birds. The CDA reports that cases of avian flu in Colorado cats are connected to both raw pet food and raw chicken.

The Werfelmann family provided Denver7 with copies of preliminary and final reports relating to the LEO of the Colorado State University (CSU) Veterinary Diagnostics Institute.

Preliminary reports state that influenza A virus (a subtype of H5N1) was detected in all food samples tested at the National Veterinary Services Institute from seven different bags.

The final report from CSU states that the samples from LEO tested positive for H5 influenza A. The case information states, “This is an emerging virus and there is detection of this virus in birds and mammals, including recent detection of home cats.”

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Denver7 reached out to a savage pet, also known as savage cat food, for a statement about Leo's case. In a text message response, A spokesperson has turned us into an online statementIt said the company learned of one cat that recovered after signing with H5N1 in Colorado. This led to the testing of Savage Cat Food by CSU. It sent out “non-negative” results to the National Veterinary Services Institute in Iowa for a “virus isolation test.”

The product was removed from the market while final test results were pending. The retailer was notified of the issue on February 17th.

The statement continues to say that on March 6th the test results confirmed that the virus was negative. Just a few days later, on March 13, Savage Pets learned another case of a kitten with the bird flu in New York, and more testing is ongoing.

“We will change market withdrawal to recall to ensure maximum safety,” reads the online update.

The savage pet claims that all of the poultry ingredients have been inspected by the USDA and passed for human consumption. The company says it is the USDA's responsibility to “hold out H5N1 from the supply chain” by testing the flock and culling the flock with positive birds.

According to the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), The savage pets remembered their savage cat food chicken From a specific batch on March 15th due to “possible health risks of bird flu.” The box in question was distributed to retailers in Arizona, California, Colorado, Washington, DC, Delaware, Kansas, Maryland, Nebraska, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Ohio, Pencilyvania, Utah, West Virginia and Wyoming.

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“When I realized that was from the food, I felt angry,” Kamille said.

Leo survived avian flu case. This is attributed to his prompt care by Werfelmann's family.

“If you think something is wrong, take your animal to the vet as soon as possible, and if there's a chance that you can get avian flu, as survival isn't easy for these people,” Steve said.

Leo is now off his raw food diet.

“He's eating pre-cooked food,” Kamille said. “He loves it almost more than he loves his raw food. He's very excited.”

Werfelmanns had no avian flu as a result of Leo's case.

The Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment (CDPHE) does not recommend supplying raw poultry products to cats. CDPHE people recommend “extra precautions” when handling raw pet food and raw poultry, such as “cleaning hands thoroughly to disinfect surfaces.”