SPCA notifies public after cat intake diagnosed with highly contagious viral disease

FORT ST. JOHN, B.C. – The Fort St. John SPCA has temporarily stopped taking in cats while they care for 13 kittens and cats diagnosed with a highly contagious viral disease.

In a Facebook post on Thursday, the shelter says the felines were taken from “an overcrowding situation near [102nd Street and 96th Avenue]” and “were known to roam the neighbourhood.”

The animals were diagnosed with Panleukopenia, which PetMD describes as a highly contagious, life-threatening infectious disease in cats, following a veterinary exam.

“Unfortunately, we are closed for cat intake until we can ensure that the 38 cats/kittens currently in our care are not infected and that our boarding and foster homes (that housed these cats) can be disinfected to ensure the safety of new intakes,” read the SPCA’s post.

The Dawson Creek branch is also under quartine as it helped house some of the infected cats.

The Fort St. John branch hopes to resume intake within 10 days once the animals currently under the shelter’s care are safe and healthy.

The SPCA advises cat owners in the area of 102nd Street and 96th Avenue to monitor their cats for vomiting, diarrhea, lethargy, and a sudden lack of appetite.

The branch says dogs are not at risk or contracting the virus, and PetMD states “it is not contagious from cats to humans, only from cat to cat.”