Canine virus claims life of all 7 foxes in Ranchi zoo: What is it? Can the viruses infect people?

New Delhi, Apr 13: The highly-contagious canine distemper virus (CDV) has claimed the lives of all the seven foxes at Ranchi's Birsa zoo in the last one month. The first death was reported in the first week of March. Thereafter, one by one all the foxes in the zoo died in a month. Most of the foxes were, however, aged.

Most of the foxes were brought to the zoo around 2004 after being rescue. Let's have a look at how serious is the virus and is there any cances it could spread to humans.

What is canine influenza?

Canine influenza (also known as dog flu) is considered fatal for canine families such as fox, dogs and wolves. It infects the lungs and affects respiratory, gastrointestinal and nervous systems.

According to CDC, "there are two different influenza A dog flu viruses: one is an H3N8 virus and the other is an H3N2 virus. Canine influenza A(H3N2) viruses are different from seasonal influenza A(H3N2) viruses that spread annually in people."

What are signs of canine influenza in dogs?

• Cough
• Runny nose
• Fever
• Lethargy
• Eye discharge
• Reduced appetite
  

The severity of illness associated with canine flu can range from no signs to severe illness resulting in pneumonia and sometimes death.

How serious is canine influenza?

The percentage of animals infected with this disease that die is very small. Some have asymptomatic infections (no signs of illness), while some have severe illness with infection. Severe illness is characterised by the onset of pneumonia.

Can canine influenza viruses infect people?

In general, canine influenza viruses poses a low threat to people. To date, there is no evidence of spread of canine influenza viruses from dogs to people and there has not been a single reported case of human infection with a canine influenza virus worldwide.

However, influenza viruses are constantly changing and it is possible that a canine influenza virus could change so that it could infect people and spread easily between people.

According to CDC, "Human infections with novel (new, non-human) influenza A viruses against which the human population has little immunity are concerning when they occur because of the potential that a pandemic could result."