This report was from a rescue shelter in the Netherlands which serves to re-home unwanted cats
and kittens. During the first 8 months of 1999 the shelter suffered from severe respiratory
disease, especially in young kittens where mortality rates of up to 50% were reported. Affected
kittens showed signs of sneezing and snotty eyes and noses, which in some cases, rapidly
progressed to a fatal pneumonia within 48 hours. The shelter had a routine policy of
vaccinating all new arrivals with a commercial vaccine containing Feline Herpes Virus (FHV),
Feline Calici Virus (FCV) and Infectious Enteritis. Treatment with a variety of different
antibiotics failed to fully control the problem. In July 1999 post mortem examination of
affected kittens was undertaken at the University of Utrecht Veterinary School where a more
thorough bacteriological examination revealed Bordetella bronchiseptica infection.