A Michael Broad Blog
The Telegraph reports on information from Battersea Dogs & Cats Home on what is described as a “kitten boom”. It’s disturbing but the Covid-19 pandemic really did mess up the UK in a number of ways including pet ownership. Before Covid-19 there were an estimated 7.5 million cats and 9 million dogs in the …
NEWS AND COMMENT: There is a rather startling news media story circulating on the Internet at the moment stating that “more than 350,000 pet cats” have been infected by Covid in Britain. And I think that story should carry with it a warning as I will do here. The warning is this: PLEASE DON’T …
The Brits, including myself, have criticised the Chinese for their alleged lax attitude towards maintaining the highest standards of security at their Wuhan biolab in order to prevent the escape of zoonotic diseases into public places. At one time it was believed that the Wuhan biolab was the source of the destructive Covid-19 pandemic …
The big news which is unfolding under the radar, and which was ignored by news media until recently because of the political crisis in the UK, is that bird flu (H5N1, a form of avian influenza) is ravaging native wild bird numbers and domestic stock across the northern hemisphere which includes America. I mention …
I declare my bias/interest: I am for the cat and against science which either purposefully or inadvertently maligns the cat. The question in the title is very big and very bold. The answer is that we don’t know, at present. However, quite a few scientists are investigating whether the domestic cat inadvertently is linked …
NEWS AND COMMENT – SHANGHAI, CHINA: This story is as much about pets as it is about people. In this chilling video we can hear the plaintiff screams and cries of Shanghai residents bellowing out their frustration to the world at the authority’s strict, zero-tolerance Covid lockdown. They are confined to their homes and …
In answering the question, I believe that there is a difference between cats and dogs. This article is about the transmission of the superbug E. coli from companion animals to human caregivers via the ‘oral-fecal route’. This is a zoonotic disease. In respect of dogs, that route would be the dog licking their backsides, …
I know that not everybody is anxious about being vaccinated. However, there will be a general sense of unease in facilities where Covid vaccinations are being administered. This is why it is so pleasant to see a calico (tortoiseshell-and-white) cat sitting on one of the seats in the waiting area, in line for their …
