Feline salmonellosis: a treat to human health?

Abstract

A four year old, male castrated, domestic short hair presented with a one day history of acute onset, mucoid, bloody diarrhea, lethargy, vomiting and anorexia. Two out of the three other cats in the house were also sick, one with neurologic signs, and one with acute onset vomiting. Initial evaluation revealed marked pyrexia, tachypnea, vomiting with hematochezia, a tense painful abdomen, respiratory alkalosis with a metabolic compensation, hyperglycemia mild hyponatremia and a mild neutrophilia. Primary differential diagnoses for the pyrexia and acute onset gastroenteritis included acute renal failure, a gastrointestinal foreign body, inflammatory bowel disease, neoplasia, and various infectious diseases. Based on diagnostics, infectious diseases were considered the most likely cause of the clinical signs. The patient was snap test negative for FeLV/FIV, and feline panleukopenia. A fecal sample was collected and submitted for fecal floatation and Salmonella culture. Pending the results of the fecal tests, the patient was presumptively diagnosed with salmonellosis for the purposes of infection control.