Distemper Cases Bring Halt to Cat Adoptions

An outbreak of feline distemper has prompted Orange County’s largest animal shelter to impose a moratorium on adoptions of most of its cats.

The disease, which spreads readily from cat to cat but is not a threat to humans or other domestic animals, can be fatal unless treated aggressively.

Shelter officials acknowledge that over the past three months, at least 25 cats have died of the disease after being adopted from the county-run facility. Hoping to combat the outbreak, adoptions of cats 5 or younger have been halted for at least 30 days.

Officials at shelters elsewhere in the county and a half-dozen run by the city of Los Angeles say the disease has not turned up in any of those locations.

Last week, a similar recommendation from Orange County’s Animal Control Advisory Board was ignored by county officials, said board member Robert Newman, an attorney in Santa Ana.

Kittens require three shots over two months to gain immunity from pan leukopenia, or cat distemper. Annual booster shots maintain the immunity. Older cats require only a single shot.