Emerg Infect Dis

eid

Emerging Infectious Diseases

1080-60401080-6059

Centers for Disease Control

11585540

2631764

Research Article

Exposure of domestic mammals to West Nile virus during an outbreak of human encephalitis, New York City, 1999.

Komar

nck6@cdc.govPanella

N. A.

Boyce

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, P.O. Box 2087, Fort Collins, CO 80522, USA.

Jul-Aug2001

74736738

We evaluated West Nile (WN) virus seroprevalence in healthy horses, dogs, and cats in New York City after an outbreak of human WN virus encephalitis in 1999. Two (3%) of 73 horses, 10 (5%) of 189 dogs, and none of 12 cats tested positive for WN virus-neutralizing antibodies. Domestic mammals should be evaluated as sentinels for local WN virus activity and predictors of the infection in humans.