Multnomah County cats infected with bird flu after eating contaminated pet food from PNW

PORTLAND, Ore. (KOIN) — Amid an ongoing national outbreak, bird flu has been detected in two Multnomah County cats after they ate the same brand of raw pet food, the Oregon Department of Agriculture announced Friday.

After being diagnosed with Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza , the cats’ owners chose to humanely euthanize the pets “due to the severity of the illness,” per the recommendation of their veterinarians.

The two cats were living in separate households in Multnomah County, but both consumed food produced by Wild Coast Raw in Olympia, Wash. The affected lots are #22660 and #22664 with a December 2025 expiration date.

“Consumers are urged to check the lot numbers on Wild Coast Raw products at home,” officials said. “If they match the affected lots, pet owners should stop feeding the product to their animals immediately.”

Veterinarians identified the disease by collecting samples from the cats as well as the opened containers of raw pet food, ODA reported.

Wild Coast shared the following statement in response to the outbreak:

In view of the concerns that pertain to the risk related to H5N1 (Avian Influenza Virus) in pet food, we would like to assure our customers that our company has conducted a vigorous risk assessment to help us determine how to best approach this issue. Based on the regulatory and industry resources that we have consulted and/or have been referred to, we have concluded that H5N1 risk mitigation in our operation can be best approached proactively.

The meat and poultry ingredients that we are using in our products are all human food-grade and are being manufactured in USDA/FSIS inspected facilities. This is an important strategy that effectively mitigates the inclusion of H5N1 virus into the raw meat products. This fact has been supported by the recently concluded study conducted by the USDA/FSIS in their effort to assess the risk of H5N1 virus in meat products coming from the agency’s inspection program. It has been established that the post-mortem inspection of poultry and animal carcasses is an effective step in identifying the definitive signs of H5N1 in the carcass before it is released for further processing. Furthermore, the study reiterated the fact that a Cooking Step shall effectively kill the H5N1 virus in the food sample. This is an important fact for our fully-cooked products that have been subjected to a cooking temperature of at least 160 deg F.

The company also shared an HPAI study on their website.

To prevent your cats from contracting bird flu, follow these rules shared by ODA.

• Do not feed your pet undercooked or raw meat, including uncooked or freeze-dried meat-based diets, treats, or animal products.
• Do not feed your pet raw (unpasteurized) milk or colostrum.
• Prevent pets from eating birds or other wild animals.
• Wash your hands after touching raw meat and interacting with poultry, livestock, or animals outside your household.
• Consider changing clothing and shoes after interacting with animals or birds with unknown health status and before interacting with your own pets.
• Contact your veterinarian if your pet appears sick. Tell your veterinarian if your pet has been exposed to raw meat, raw milk, or wild waterfowl.

KOIN 6 News will continue to follow this story.