Mountain lion in Douglas County was first North American case of staggering disease

A sick puma was euthanized Colorado State Parks and Wildlife Refuge The department announced in a news release Tuesday that a case reported by officials in Douglas County last year was the first confirmed case of the severe illness in North America.

A startling diseaseRust disease, a usually fatal neurological syndrome in European domestic cats, is caused by the rust virus and is characterised by animals staggering, lameness and abnormal behaviour.

It has also been found in zoo animals such as rodents, donkeys, marsupials and lions. According to CPW.

Wildlife officers first received a report of the sick mountain lion in a residential area of ​​Douglas County on May 12, 2023, and found it struggling to move and putting its weight on its hind legs, according to the research published in the journal Nature. Journal of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention this week.

The cougar was euthanized and tested for a variety of diseases, all of which came back negative. The symptoms resembled those of a deadly disease seen in Europe, so wildlife officials ran tissue samples to Friedrich Leofler Institute Researchers in Germany confirmed the diagnosis.

Scientists in Colorado said they don’t yet know how widespread the virus is among pet cats and wild animals. Colorado State University Karen Fox, lead author of the study and research scientist and former CPW wildlife pathologist.