Hannelore Kirchenmaier burst into the animal shelter here on Thursday, desperate for advice after a chain of events turned the town's household pets into objects of angst.
First, a stray cat died of bird flu on the German island of Ruegen in the Baltic Sea. Before long German authorities decreed that all cats had to be kept indoors throughout areas where infected wild birds had been found, including Singen. They also said dogs should stay on leashes when outside.
So there are now millions of pet owners in Germany trying to contend with their beloved four-legged bundles of trouble.
"What are we supposed to do?" asked Kirchenmaier, 51.
She takes regular care of a friend's dog that has suddenly befriended a wild cat. Should she keep the dog away from the cat? And how could she keep the cat away from birds?
"I'd take the cat," she said. "But I already have seven myself."
Anxiety on the march
Bird flu's rapid march from Asia to Europe and Africa has created waves of anxiety and economic disruption; the poultry industry is disabled in much of Europe.
Meanwhile, only the one cat is known to have died of the virus in Europe, and that was far from this town of 44,000, which lies near sprawling Lake Constance, a stone's throw from Switzerland.
But when a dead duck found in Singen was confirmed to have the H5N1 strain of bird flu last week, the town became a hotbed of dread. It is facing a challenge to its mood and social rhythms, if not its health.
Cats can become infected with H5N1 by eating infected birds but it is very rare. And medical authorities say there is barely any chance of a cat passing the disease to humans.
Such reassurance in Singen came from the head of the animal shelter's board, Marion Csajor, whose precise directions calmed Kirchenmaier. Feed the wild cat to keep it from gnawing on dead birds, Csajor counseled her, and tell the authorities immediately if it shows signs of sickness.
Satisfied, Kirchenmaier hurried off to take the leashed dog on its afternoon walk.
Castoff pets
What the shelter cannot do, Csajor explained later, is take in cats and dogs whose owners now feel threatened by their pets. The 86 cats, 22 dogs and assorted other small critters are her primary charges.
"We have to protect the ones we already have," she said.
As the shelter fielded visits and phone calls almost without end, the city government has also been at work.
On the night of Feb. 25, Mayor Oliver Ehret received a call from the agriculture minister of the state of Baden-Wuerttemberg confirming that Singen's dead duck had the H5N1 strain, the mayor's assistant recalled.
The next morning, the assistant, Michael Huebner, looked out of his office window at the town's traditional pre-Lent festival only to see a man cavorting about in a chicken costume.
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