Fatal virus prompts Indy shelter to say no cats for now

INDIANAPOLIS — A deadly and highly contagious feline virus has swept through the Indianapolis Animal Care & Control's shelter, which is asking residents to stop bringing in cats for surrender at least for now.

The agency will spend at least the next 72 hours and possibly as long as two weeks decontaminating the rooms that housed the sick cats.

Any cats brought to the shelter by their owners during this time will be at risk for immediate euthanasia.

The outbreak started with a number of cats brought to the shelter who were infected with the feline panleukopenia virus. Similar to parvovirus for dogs, this virus is often fatal. Symptoms can include loss of appetite and hemorrhagic diarrhea.

About 20 cats have tested positive for the disease at the Indianapolis Shelter and more than 100 cats were exposed to the virus, said Dawn Contos, spokeswoman for Animal Care & Control.

Cats can be asymptomatic carriers of the disease, inadvertently infecting other cats. Those who survive enjoy immunity but they can shed the virus for weeks, creating another source of infection. Wild animals, such as raccoons, can also be infected with or carry the virus.

The only treatment for feline panleukopenia virus is supportive care. However, there is a vaccine to prevent against this, and every cat is vaccinated as it enters the shelter, Contos said. But it takes two vaccines two weeks apart to achieve immunity.

So Contos said that Animal Care and Control will euthanize up to 60 cats.

"It's not worth the risk," Contos said. "This is a really super unpleasant way to get sick and to potentially die."

The disease spread quickly among Animal Care & Control before staffers realized it. The cats who may have been infected during this have been released to local rescue groups and shelters, which will provided needed supportive care for the animals.

About 35 percent of the cats at Animal Care and Control are owner surrendered. Animal Care & Control has offered to help families planning to surrender a cat with supplies such as food and litter for the next two weeks while they wait for the shelter to re-open.