# Cats can catch and pass on SARS! Get rid of your cats now! **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [October 29, 2003, 8:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cats-can-catch-and-pass-on-sars-get-rid-of-your-cats-now/210308 "2003-10-29T20:43:09Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 17\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![astro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/9dc877/32.png) [@astro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/astro)\ **Post date:** [October 29, 2003, 8:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cats-can-catch-and-pass-on-sars-get-rid-of-your-cats-now/210308/1 "2003-10-29T20:43:09Z")
It’s true! Pussy cats must go! [Cats ‘can catch and pass on Sars’](http://www.ananova.com/news/story/sm_833418.html?menu=news.latestheadlines) ---
**Author:** ![Duderdude2](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/cdc98d/32.png) [@Duderdude2](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Duderdude2)\ **Post date:** [October 29, 2003, 8:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cats-can-catch-and-pass-on-sars-get-rid-of-your-cats-now/210308/2 "2003-10-29T20:50:21Z")
So can children. Guess we’ll have to throw them out too. ---
**Author:** ![Horrifying\_Howler\_Monkey](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/df788c/32.png) [@Horrifying\_Howler\_Monkey](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Horrifying_Howler_Monkey)\ **Post date:** [October 29, 2003, 9:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cats-can-catch-and-pass-on-sars-get-rid-of-your-cats-now/210308/3 "2003-10-29T21:37:51Z")
Children would be the bigger threat, because they can go out and catch it from school. Where’s the cat going to get SARS from? They don’t even know if cats can pass it on to people. ---
**Author:** ![Smeghead](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/f1d935/32.png) [@Smeghead](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Smeghead)\ **Post date:** [October 29, 2003, 10:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cats-can-catch-and-pass-on-sars-get-rid-of-your-cats-now/210308/4 "2003-10-29T22:40:07Z")
That’s IT. I’m cancelling my cat’s plane ticket to Hong Kong right now, and I don’t care WHAT he has to say about it. ---
**Author:** ![missbunny](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/76d3ee/32.png) [@missbunny](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/missbunny)\ **Post date:** [October 29, 2003, 10:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cats-can-catch-and-pass-on-sars-get-rid-of-your-cats-now/210308/5 "2003-10-29T22:54:18Z")
What about humans? They too can catch and pass on SARS. Can we get rid of them too? ---
**Author:** ![Gatopescado](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gatopescado/32/5711_2.png) [@Gatopescado](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gatopescado)\ **Post date:** [October 29, 2003, 11:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cats-can-catch-and-pass-on-sars-get-rid-of-your-cats-now/210308/6 "2003-10-29T23:40:33Z")
One more reason to hate cats! Hooray! * * * I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again: I hate cats. ---
**Author:** ![antidisestablishmentarianism](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/e47774/32.png) [@antidisestablishmentarianism](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/antidisestablishmentarianism)\ **Post date:** [October 29, 2003, 11:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cats-can-catch-and-pass-on-sars-get-rid-of-your-cats-now/210308/7 "2003-10-29T23:48:12Z")
Mama says cats are the devil. ---
**Author:** ![Kat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/b19c9b/32.png) [@Kat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kat)\ **Post date:** [October 30, 2003, 12:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cats-can-catch-and-pass-on-sars-get-rid-of-your-cats-now/210308/8 "2003-10-30T00:57:29Z")
How many people have sent their cats on a trip to China recently, though? ---
**Author:** ![Hanna](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/b3f665/32.png) [@Hanna](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hanna)\ **Post date:** [October 30, 2003, 1:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cats-can-catch-and-pass-on-sars-get-rid-of-your-cats-now/210308/9 "2003-10-30T01:20:05Z")
Well, one of my cats did hitchhike up to Toronto a few weeks ago. I don’t know how he managed that without a thumb. ---
**Author:** ![Sunspace](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sunspace/32/1250_2.png) [@Sunspace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sunspace)\ **Post date:** [October 30, 2003, 2:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cats-can-catch-and-pass-on-sars-get-rid-of-your-cats-now/210308/10 "2003-10-30T02:34:21Z")
Hey! I _live_ in Toronto… [sub]umm…[/sub] ---
**Author:** ![Rhum\_Runner](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/2bfe46/32.png) [@Rhum\_Runner](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rhum_Runner)\ **Post date:** [October 30, 2003, 4:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cats-can-catch-and-pass-on-sars-get-rid-of-your-cats-now/210308/11 "2003-10-30T04:26:27Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by antidisestablishmentarianism \* > \*\*Mama says cats are the devil. \*\* And here I thought it was people with overly long user names. ---
**Author:** ![Rhum\_Runner](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/2bfe46/32.png) [@Rhum\_Runner](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rhum_Runner)\ **Post date:** [October 30, 2003, 4:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cats-can-catch-and-pass-on-sars-get-rid-of-your-cats-now/210308/12 "2003-10-30T04:34:44Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by antidisestablishmentarianism \* > \*\*Mama says cats are the devil. \*\* And here I thought it was people with overly long user names. ---
**Author:** ![Leaper](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/4bbf92/32.png) [@Leaper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Leaper)\ **Post date:** [October 30, 2003, 6:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cats-can-catch-and-pass-on-sars-get-rid-of-your-cats-now/210308/13 "2003-10-30T06:59:10Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Rhum Runner \* > > > [@](#): > > > > _Originally posted by antidisestablishmentarianism_ > > Mama says cats are the devil. > > \*\*And here I thought it was people with overly long user names. \*\* No, it’s the people who make multiple identical posts. ---
**Author:** ![AskNott](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/asknott/32/5790_2.png) [@AskNott](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AskNott)\ **Post date:** [October 30, 2003, 2:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cats-can-catch-and-pass-on-sars-get-rid-of-your-cats-now/210308/14 "2003-10-30T14:24:37Z")
Your naughty bits can catch and pass on HIV! Get rid of your naughty bits now! :dubious: :eek: :rolleyes: ---
**Author:** ![Ferret\_Herder](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/e47774/32.png) [@Ferret\_Herder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ferret_Herder)\ **Post date:** [October 30, 2003, 2:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cats-can-catch-and-pass-on-sars-get-rid-of-your-cats-now/210308/15 "2003-10-30T14:45:27Z")
They mentioned ferrets too. I’m not surprised, since ferrets can catch human colds and flu - they have such similar respiratory systems in some ways that they’re often used in studies like this. I always have to be careful around my ferrets when I have a cold, as I don’t want to infect them too. ---
**Author:** ![Krisfer\_the\_Cat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/5f9b8f/32.png) [@Krisfer\_the\_Cat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Krisfer_the_Cat)\ **Post date:** [October 30, 2003, 5:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cats-can-catch-and-pass-on-sars-get-rid-of-your-cats-now/210308/16 "2003-10-30T17:13:18Z")
well hell there goes Sissy Kitty’s trip to Toronto… Hi Sunspac! ---
**Author:** ![Rhum\_Runner](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/2bfe46/32.png) [@Rhum\_Runner](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rhum_Runner)\ **Post date:** [October 30, 2003, 6:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cats-can-catch-and-pass-on-sars-get-rid-of-your-cats-now/210308/17 "2003-10-30T18:58:47Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Leaper \* > \*\*\*\*And here I thought it was people with overly long user names. \*\* No, it’s the people who make multiple identical posts. \*\* [/QUOTE] It is?