Bird flu (in cows and raw milk) finally getting serious

California has declared an emergency, and 20 big cats in a Washington state cat sanctuary died from it.

More than 60 people in eight states have been infected, with mostly mild illnesses, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. One person in Louisiana has been hospitalized with the nation’s first known severe illness caused by the virus, health officials said this week.

California has been testing milk products, and so far they’ve found virus in at least 650 herds, representing about three-quarters of all affected U.S. dairy herds. Here’s more on the California emergency.

Also, 20 large cats (as in tigers) have died from it in a Washington state sanctuary; here’s that story as well.