N genes of viruses infecting the cat and goose are >99% identical to that of A/bar-headed goose/Qinghai/65/2005(H5N1). These findings support the notion that cats may be broadly susceptible to circulating H5N1 viruses and thus may play a role in reassortment, antigenic drift, and transmission." January 24, 2007 "Chairul Anwar Nidom of Airlangga University in Surabaya, Indonesia, told journalists last week that he had taken blood samples from 500 stray cats near poultry markets in four areas of Java, including the capital, Jakarta, and one area in Sumatra, all of which have recently had outbreaks of H5N1 in poultry and people. Of these cats, 20% carried antibodies to H5N1. This does not mean that they were still carrying the virus, only that they had been infected - probably through eating birds that had H5N1. Many other cats that were infected are likely to have died from the resulting illness, so many more than 20% of the original cat populations may have acquired H5N1." Mammals in general H5N1 has been transmitted in laboratories to many species including mice and ferrets to study its effects. A purposely mutated strain in ferrets has engendered a notable international policy debate regarding the openness of scientific research, the mandates of public health, and the potential for bioterrorism. H5N1 was transmitted in the wild to three civet cats in Vietnam in August 2005 and a stone marten in Germany in March 2006. The BBC reported that a stray dog in Azerbaijan died from the disease on March 15, 2006. People living in areas where the A(H5N1) virus has infected birds are advised to keep their cats indoors. "Cats can be infected through the respiratory tract. Cats can also be infected when they ingest the virus, which is a novel route for influenza transmission in mammals. But cats excrete only one-thousandth the amount of virus that chickens do [...] The concern is that if large numbers of felines and other carnivores become infected, the virus might mutate in a series of events that could lead to an epidemic among humans. Dogs, foxes, seals, and other carnivores may be vulnerable to A(H5N1) virus infection, Dr. Osterhaus said. Tests in Thailand have shown that the virus has infected dogs without causing apparent symptoms." H5N1 has the potential to infect cattle. Asymptomatic shedding of H5N1 by infected calves and subsequent seroconversion is possible. Bird-to-calf transmission resulting in seroconversion is probable. While