Korean Veterinary Medical Association Receives Reports of Similar Cases Nationwide
Testing Needed if Symptoms Like Loss of Appetite and Fatigue Appear
Recently, multiple cases of unexplained neuro-muscular disease have been reported in cats, prompting the Korean Veterinary Medical Association to urge pet owners to exercise caution.
On the 11th, the Korean Veterinary Medical Association recommended that if a cat suddenly loses its appetite, has difficulty standing, does not move, or shows abnormal symptoms such as dark red urine, owners should immediately visit an animal hospital for a thorough examination. The association advised that when cats show signs of anorexia or lethargy, it is difficult for owners to determine whether these symptoms are temporary or due to illness, so they should have blood and urine tests conducted at an animal hospital to check for the possibility of neuro-muscular disease.
Many animal hospitals reporting these cases conducted tests for major infectious diseases on the symptomatic cats, all of which returned negative results. Some diseases currently undergoing detailed testing are expected to take another one to two weeks before results are available.
At present, protozoal diseases are strongly suspected as the cause of the neuro-muscular disease in cats. In an interview with YTN, Heo Ju-hyung, president of the Korean Veterinary Medical Association, stated, "Considering the symptoms, protozoal diseases are strongly suspected." Protozoal diseases refer to illnesses caused by parasites and broadly include some fungal diseases. President Heo explained, "We have collected cases from animal hospitals nationwide, and more than 10 hospitals have reported the same symptoms. So far, only one death has been reported, and the others have improved after treatment."
Meanwhile, as similar cases have sporadically occurred nationwide, social networking services (SNS) have raised the possibility of transmission through specific brands of pet food or litter; however, it is currently difficult to draw definitive conclusions. The Korean Veterinary Medical Association stated that further investigation will be necessary once detailed test results are available. However, since infectiousness has not yet been confirmed, it is recommended that in multi-cat households, if some cats show symptoms, they should be isolated from other pets.
Cases of the disease have also been posted on online cat owner communities. One netizen shared a post saying that a friend who keeps 12 cats indoors lost three cats due to abnormal symptoms, and the rest are currently hospitalized with the same symptoms. Following this post, comments appeared such as, "My friend’s cat also crossed the rainbow bridge with the same symptoms," and "My cat was hospitalized last month with the same symptoms."
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