Highly pathogenic bird flu behind 'unusual deaths in cats' in Poland, WHO says

the profile of a ginger house cat seen in silouette with a puff of white feathers hanging from its mouth

Dozens of cats in Poland recently died after contracting a highly pathogenic type of bird flu, the World Health Organization (WHO) announced Sunday (July 16).

The bird flu virus — a subtype of avian influenza A called H5N1 — has sporadically infected cats in the past, but this marks the first report of "high numbers of infected cats over a wide geographical area within a country," the WHO noted.