A Wairarapa vet who has had an onslaught of calls from cat owners worried about their felines catching bird flu says it is rare when cats get the H5 strain of the virus, but there is a high mortality rate.

Days after a migratory bird tested positive for bird flu in Wellington, authorities have detected a second case of the deadly virus in a native bird.

A Wairarapa vet who has had an onslaught of calls from cat owners worried about their felines catching bird flu says it is rare when cats get the H5 strain of the virus, but there…