Pet Health

Brucellosis in Hawaii

Submitted by Kelly Foster, DVM

Brucellosis is a rising concern in Hawaiʻi. Commercial swine and nearly all U.S. cattle herds are certified free, but Hawaiʻi’s feral swine are a persistent reservoir for Brucella suis, with documented spillover to cattle and ongoing risk to dogs, horses, and people — including hunters and the veterinary team. Feral swine here test positive at roughly three times the mainland rate; seroprevalence is highest on Maui, then Oʻahu, then Hawaiʻi Island, running about 10–25% on most main islands but staying low on Kauaʻi and Molokaʻi.

Feral swine are usually subclinical carriers. In symptomatic pigs, expect the classic reproductive picture — infertility, abortion, orchitis, and sometimes lameness — and note that there is no effective treatment and no vaccine, so an infected herd is a management problem rather than a treatment one. Cattle are most often exposed at the wildlife–livestock interface, so a brucellosis-positive cow should prompt questions about feral swine pressure on that property.

Among companion animals, hog-hunting dogs are the main local concern, acquiring B. suis through contact with feral pig blood, urine, saliva, or tissue; it’s worth asking owners about hunting exposure when reproductive or nonspecific signs arise. B. canis is a separate entity, mostly relevant in breeding kennels and imported dogs.

Report suspected animal cases to the State Veterinarian. Human brucellosis is an urgent-category reportable condition in Hawaiʻi — exposed people should be reported promptly by phone to the Disease Outbreak Control Division (Oʻahu) or the District Health Office on the neighbor islands. The feral reservoir isn’t going away, so surveillance, biosecurity counseling for cattle producers, and education for owners of hunting dogs remain the practical tools available.

What Is Brucellosis?

By Clayton Foster, MDAli‘i Health Center

Brucellosis (brew-sell-OH-sis) is an infection caused by a bacterium (germ) called Brucella (brew-SELL-ah)
Brucella is most often carried by pigs, goats, sheep and cows
In Hawai‘i, wild pigs are most likely to carry Brucella, and pig hunters are at higher risk for getting brucellosis

How do I know if I have brucellosis?

Symptoms of brucellosis usually develop gradually over months. They may include:

Persistent, unexplained fever
Night sweats (soaking through clothes, sheets)
Fatigue
Muscle or joint pain
Weight loss and poor appetite
Headaches
Pain and swelling in the testicles

How do I protect myself from brucellosis?

If you are a hunter, at a minimum, you should wear arm-length waterproof gloves and avoid touching your face while field dressing
Ideally, you should use waterproof gloves, eye protection and a mask when working with raw meat or body fluids from pigs, goats, sheep and cows
If you are not a hunter, try to avoid contact with wild pigs. When cleaning up after wild pigs (removing a dead pig or repairing an area dug up by pigs, for example), use waterproof gloves and a mask
Wash your hands with soap and water after handling raw meat or animal body fluids
Cook all wild game thoroughly. Don’t eat any part of wild game raw
Don’t feed raw animal parts to dogs. Dogs can get brucellosis and pass it to humans
Don’t drink unpasteurized milk

How serious is brucellosis?

Fortunately, brucellosis is rarely life-threatening. However, it does not go away on its own and requires a long course of antibiotics.
If you think you might have brucellosis, ask your healthcare provider to test for it.

AVMA One Health article on brucellosis in humans and animals:
https://avmajournals.avma.org/view/journals/javma/261/4/javma.23.01.0033.xml

Why Routine Testing for FeLV/FIV in Animal Shelters Is No Longer Recommended

Submitted by Lisa Labrecque, DVM

Feline Leukemia Virus (FeLV) and Feline Immunodeficiency Virus (FIV) affect cats of all ages worldwide. The percentage of cats that are infected with these viruses varies according to geographic region, the environment, and the lifestyle of the cat, but estimates tend to be quite low, with 2-4% of cats infected in the U.S.^1,2 and a similar percentage here in Hawaii.

There has been much debate over the past few years in the animal welfare community about whether to routinely test cats for FeLV and FIV. For many years, shelters have felt an obligation to test all cats for FeLV and FIV prior to adoption. The hope was that testing would ensure that shelters were placing healthy cats up for adoption and that the viruses might be eradicated through shelter testing efforts. However, new information about the tests and the diseases has led to the recommendation that shelters discontinue routine testing of cats for FeLV and FIV.³

New research has shown that a negative or positive result at one point in time is not definitive by itself. The diseases have an overall low prevalence in our cat population, and the available tests are not 100% accurate.⁴

Furthermore, we now know that cats may experience a variability of infection, so we can no longer make conclusions about the results of a single test. For cats that test negative, we can only conclude that they are negative at the time they were tested. It takes at least 30 days from the time of infection with FeLV to test positive, and it can take up to 60 days for a cat infected with FIV to develop enough antibodies to cause a positive result. Therefore, if a cat was infected just prior to intake at the shelter, they would test negative but could have the disease.

A negative test can also give adopters a false sense of security. The concept of incubation periods and exposure can be difficult to convey during adoption when people are already overloaded with information and excitement about their new pet. Although chances are that a cat testing negative is truly negative (due to low prevalence of the disease), some cats may have been exposed prior to intake and could develop FeLV or FIV after adoption.

On the other hand, a positive test in a healthy cat who is at low-risk for infection is more likely to be a false-positive than a positive result in a sick cat or one at higher risk. In typical cat populations where there is low prevalence of disease, a majority of positive results will be false positives.⁴ For example, if there is 2% disease prevalence in a population, and a test with 98% sensitivity is used to test 1,000 cats, there will 39 positive tests:
19 true positives (0.02 x .98 = 0.096, 0.0196 x 1,000)
20 false positives (0.02 x 1,000)
Note that there will be slightly more false positives than true positives. Compare this to the same testing performed in a population with 4% disease prevalence:
39 true positives (0.04 x .98 = 0.0392, 0.0392 x 1,000)
20 false positives (0.02 x 1,000)
In this population with higher disease prevalence, there are many more true positives than false, making the test that much more reliable.

Positive FIV test results may also be caused by circulating maternal antibodies that can be present in a kitten up to 6 months of age. And some cats who are exposed to FeLV can contain the virus early on; if this occurs, they no longer shed the virus and cannot infect other cats but may still test positive.²

At the Hawaiian Humane Society, we no longer test healthy cats or kittens. We still test sick cats, those who have clinical signs consistent with infection, and at-risk cats. Based on our newer understanding of the variability of disease, we believe that FeLV/FIV testing is best done in collaboration with a cat’s primary care veterinarian where they receive comprehensive care and recommendations based on their lifestyle.

1. Cornell Feline Health Center, Cornell University, College of Veterinary Medicine, “Testing for FeLV and FIV”
2. 2020 American Association of Feline Practitioners’ Feline Retrovirus Testing and Management Guidelines
3. Shelter Medicine Program, University of Wisconsin-Madison, School of Veterinary Medicine, “Why are some shelters no longer testing all cats for FeLV and FIV?”
4. Journal of Veterinary Internal Medicine, Performance of 4 Point‐of‐Care Screening Tests for Feline Leukemia Virus and Feline Immunodeficiency Virus.

New World Screwworm Updates

Effective August 3, 2026: Mexico will require USDA-accredited veterinarians to issue New World screwworm inspection documents for pet dogs and pet birds traveling to Mexico. Pet cats will continue to travel to Mexico with no documents needed prior to travel.

Pet Dogs

Pet dogs will be required to travel with a NWS Inspection Certificate for Pet Dogs Moving (Exporting) from the United States to Mexico that is issued and signed by a USDA-Accredited Veterinarian within 5 days of arrival in Mexico. This form does NOT require APHIS endorsement.

Pet Birds

Pet birds may travel to Mexico beginning August 3, 2026 and will be required to travel with a NWS Inspection Addendum for Pet Birds Moving (Exporting) from the United States to Mexico that is issued and signed by a USDA-accredited veterinarian within 5 days of arrival in Mexico. This addendum does NOT require APHIS endorsement; however, it will be required IN ADDITION TO the “Veterinary Health Certificate for Export of Pet Birds from the United States of America to Mexico”, which must be issued by a USDA-accredited veterinarian AND endorsed by APHIS prior to travel.

Pet Cats

Pet cats will continue to travel to Mexico with no documents needed prior to travel.

Please refer to the relevant sections of the APHIS Pet Travel to Mexico webpage for more details.

APHIS’ NWS notice regarding NWS restrictions to Mexico has been updated accordingly:

Due to the detection of New World screwworm (NWS, Cochliomyia hominivorax) in the United States, Mexico continues to prohibit exports of the following species from all U.S. states:

Cattle (slaughter and reproduction)
Wild ruminants (non-bovine)
Equine (slaughter, breeding/work, and sport/exhibition/transit)
Sheep and goats (slaughter and reproduction)
Swine (reproduction)
Ferrets (commercial and pets)
Songbirds/ornamental birds/raptors (commercial and pets)
All zoological species as listed under the “Zoological Animals” and “Other Animals” section of the IREGs Mexico page

ADDITIONAL GUIDANCE
As of November 22, 2024, Mexico is considered to be affected with screwworm. All dogs (including U.S.-origin dogs returning to the United States after traveling to Mexico) must meet APHIS requirements for screwworm freedom certification upon entry (re-entry) into the United States. Additional information can be found on the APHIS Dog Import Website.

ASPCA has developed guidance for Animal Transport here.

Canine Distemper in Hawaii

Submitted by Erika Sox, DVM, DACVIM

While we enjoy a low prevalence of Canine distemper virus in Hawaii, we do occasionally see cases here and it is important to remain vigilant to protect pets that may be vulnerable to infection.

Canine distemper is a highly contagious and often fatal viral disease of domestic dogs. Young puppies and unvaccinated adult dogs in high density housing are at highest risk. Acutely affected dogs commonly exhibit clinical signs of fever, lethargy and inappetence, respiratory signs (nasal discharge, coughing and labored breathing due to pneumonia), ocular signs (uveitis, KCS), and GI signs (anorexia, vomiting, diarrhea with or without blood). In severe cases, these may be followed by central neurologic signs such as clonic muscle tremors and seizures. Neurologic signs can take up to 3 months to develop and sometimes do so without other preceding clinical signs. ^{1, 2}

Diagnosis is made by recognition of compatible clinical signs, along with confirmation through testing, ideally with quantitative RT-PCR which can distinguish between natural and vaccine-derived distemper. Testing is readily available through commercial veterinary labs but take several days to return, making clinical suspicion and proper handling of suspect cases imperative while awaiting results. Distemper should be considered in any febrile dog exhibiting symptoms of the GI, respiratory and neurological systems, especially if unvaccinated or incompletely vaccinated. ^{1, 2}

Distemper is shed in all body secretions of acutely infected animals and can be spread by both direct contact and via respiratory droplets. Isolation of both clinically ill and unvaccinated exposed dogs requires designated airspace and is crucial to preventing spread. The virus is fragile in the environment and readily killed with most cleaning agents but can survive at least several hours. Staff handling affected animals should wear appropriate PPE and practice proper hygiene protocols. Detailed isolation and clearance protocols are available online. ¹

There is no specific treatment or cure for Distemper virus. Treatment is generally supportive in nature and may include IV fluid therapy, anti-emetics, nutritional support, antibiotics for secondary infections, and anti-convulsant medications. ^{1, 2}

Vaccination is highly effective in preventing disease and is considered core for all puppies and dogs worldwide. Initial vaccination should be administered at 6 to 8 weeks of age and repeated every 2 to 4 weeks until 16 weeks of age, followed by a 1-year booster and then boosters every 3 years. ³

HDOA HPAI Guidance for Veterinary Clinics

Submitted by Raquel Wong, DVM, Hawaii Dept of Ag Animal Industry Division

Avian clients should not be turned away simply because HPAI is in the environment. Clinics and mobile veterinarians are encouraged to continue treating birds with extra attention focused on biosecurity and the signs of HPAI should they need to report suspected cases to animal health officials.

What are the signs of HPAI?

Decreased water consumption
Extreme depression
Very quiet
Difficulty breathing
Decrease in feed or water intake
Swelling or purple discoloration of head, eyelids, comb, wattle, and hocks
Decrease in egg production
Sudden unexplained death

What if a client calls with sick birds?

Veterinary clinics should develop a set of questions for their clients to determine the HPAI risk of the pet bird and then develop their own procedures appropriate to the risk. Some starter questions to consider:

Is the avian species a wild bird?
- Veterinarians should not let wild waterfowl, gulls or other susceptible HPAI wild species into their facility.
Are all birds sick or just one? What is the overall health of the flock?
- If one bird is sick or dead and all the others appear healthy it may not be HPAI. However, if a flock is experiencing daily mortality or there are a number of dead birds it should be reported to the Animal Industry Division, Hawaii Department of Agriculture at 808-483-7100 (Monday – Friday 7:45 AM – 4:30 PM). After hours or weekends to 808-837-8092. Or email HDOAIC@hawaii.gov.
Does the bird have access to the outside in a free ranging type of situation (vs. being in a contained/controlled housing away from environmental elements)
- If yes, how long does the bird spend time outside? Is the time spent outside supervised?
Does the client live by a body of water or agricultural field?
Does the client feed wild birds or wild animals?
Does the client engage in sport hunting of wild birds?
Does the client work or volunteer with any avian species?

Answering yes to any of these questions should prompt additional precautionary procedures to be utilized and have AI on your list of differential diagnoses.

How should clinics handle routine avian appointments?

Avian patient physical contact should be limited, and staff should always wear the appropriate PPE and wash their hands before and after handling birds. Additional biosecurity guidance includes:

Make an exam room at the clinic for avian appointments only.
See avian appointments at the end of the day.
Limit staff contact with avian species, especially those that have pet birds at home.
Emergency surgeries only for avian species.
Hospitalized avian species should be kept away from routine avian appointments.
All medical equipment and laundry used for avian appointments should be washed and disinfected appropriately.
Disinfect exam rooms following label directions on preparation and contact time to ensure it kills potential HPAI virus. Look for a disinfectant with an EPA registered product with label claim for Avian Influenza
Proper PPE should be used including gowns, foot coverings, masks, gloves, and eye protection.
Educate staff and clients about how HPAI is spread and how to reduce the spread of the disease.

How should mobile veterinarians handle client visits?

Wear clean clothing and boots.
If possible, limit ambulatory visits to facilities with poultry to one site per day.
Wash your vehicle immediately prior to and when leaving a site with poultry.
Use disposable coveralls, boots, and gloves, +/- masks. If possible and agreeable to the client, leave them at the client’s site.

Considerations for clinic staff biosecurity

Does the facility have a written biosecurity plan and procedures?
Do employees and volunteers receive biosecurity training?
Do employees and volunteers change into dedicated work clothing onsite? Is work-provided clothing laundered onsite, or is it taken home with employees?
What personal protective equipment (such as boots, gloves, coveralls, and masks) do you provide?
Are staff allowed to keep poultry or pet birds at home? Do staff engage in sport hunting of wild birds?
If the attending veterinarian is an offsite contractor, do they treat birds at other locations? What precautions do they take when visiting your facility?
Are there protocols (such as showering, changing clothes, or avoiding bird contact for 72 hours) for people who visit captive wild bird facilities or poultry premises?

What if you suspect a bird in your care has HPAI?

Call the Animal Industry Division, Hawaii Department of Agriculture at 808-483-7100 (Monday – Friday 7:45 AM – 4:30 PM). After hours or weekends to 808-837-8092. Or email HDOAIC@hawaii.gov.