Prime Highlights:
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The H5N1 bird flu has hit tigers, leopards, and house cats in some parts of India.
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This spread from birds to big and small animals is a worry for both public health and animal safety.
Key Facts:
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A few big cats, like tigers and a leopard, have died from H5N1 at a care place in Nagpur.
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House cats in India have the bird flu too.
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People in charge are now making more checks and keeping a closer watch at zoos and animal homes all over.
Key Background:
India is seeing a scary change in how the H5N1 bird flu acts. It has now shown up in many kinds of mammals, both wild and pets. At the Gorewada Rescue Centre in Nagpur, three tigers and a leopard died from the flu in late 2024. Checks after death showed the H5N1 kind, which is usually in birds.
What is more worrying is that house cats now have the virus. Usually, bird flu is in wild and farm birds, but it can now move to meat-eating mammals. This is part of a world issue where H5N1 is hitting more than just birds.
For now, the risk to people is low, but health and wildlife pros are very careful. This virus moving between kinds makes them worry it could change more, maybe getting easier to pass or more harmful to other kinds, like us.
To deal with this, zoo and rescue folks in places with the flu are doing more to keep things safe. They cut down on people near animals, limit who can get close, and watch animal health more. They are also better at spotting signs of more sick cases early.
Pros say we need a “One Health” way — working together across fields to watch and handle diseases from animals. With nature, pets, and people living close, watching diseases together matters more than ever. The new bird flu cases are a clear sign to stay sharp and know as the virus changes.
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