Beginning this week, veterinarian, Michelle Chiunti will be making regular contributions to Cramahe Now. We welcome Michelle's articles. Readers will find her articles informative, providing valuable insights into animal care.
Today, she tackles swine flu and its effects.
Swine flu and your pets
by Michelle Chiunti D.V.M.
The H1N1 virus causing “swine flu” is all the worry these days. Having recently fallen prey to this virus in our household, I wouldn’t wish it upon anyone – human or animal! Saying that, the good news is that we are all recovering now, and do not have to endure the line-ups and congestion to get our vaccine given our stimulated immunity from recovery. Having endured a mutation of influenza four years ago and this H1N1 influenza currently, the healthy immune system can endure these assailants without the scare the media has spun on this topic. My son was sure he was going to die based upon the reports on the news, and I had to assure him every five minutes that he wasn’t.
The human H1N1 virus emerged as a pathogen last year. It is a combination of antigenic shift from the North American swine influenza, the North American avian influenza, the human influenza, and the Asian-European swine influenza H1N1 virus with excellent variance to cause morbidity. Most cold and influenza viruses are not contagious between humans and animals. Pigs and humans happen to be the two closest related domestic species and share the same effects from the H1N1 viruses. Continued...
To read the whole article: Swine flu and your pets
Sunday 8 November 2009
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