Italy: dogs and cats test positive for H5N1
7 July, 2023
Italy's health ministry announced that serology tests conducted on dogs and one cat at a poultry farm in Brescia, situated in Lombardy in northern Italy, indicated that they likely had a mild case of H5N1 avian influenza. The poultry farm had previously experienced an outbreak of H5N1. Additionally, officials stated that an analysis of the virus affecting the poultry revealed its closest resemblance to a virus recently found in gulls in northern Italy. Furthermore, the virus exhibited a mutation in the PB2 gene, suggesting a potential adaptation to mammals.
