South Florida cat rescuers are sounding the alarm over a highly contagious virus they say is hitting local cats unusually hard this summer — and owners may be able to carry it home without realizing it.
Feline panleukopenia, sometimes called feline parvo or feline distemper, has been spreading through cat populations in Miami-Dade and Broward counties, according to Local 10 News.
Miami-Dade Animal Services reported 216 cases so far in 2026, Local 10 reported Monday. Broward County Animal Care does not track individual case totals, but told the station it has seen an increase this summer that resulted in eight to 10 instances of cat rooms being placed under quarantine because of exposure.
For the people caring for sick and abandoned cats, the numbers come with a much more emotional reality.
“We typically have a few cases every year and that’s really normal, but we’ve never seen anything like this,” Deborah Pachano of Miami’s Pretty Kitty Rescue told Local 10.
Pachano said she has watched kittens die during the current wave, describing the losses as heartbreaking.
Tanya Lynn Heller, founder of Purrr Adoption & Sanctuary, offered an even more unsettling warning for people who assume their own indoor cat is protected simply because it never leaves home.
“You could be playing with some cat that you think is healthy, come home, pet your cat, and you’ve given it a death sentence,” Heller told Local 10.
The American Veterinary Medical Association describes feline panleukopenia as a highly contagious and potentially fatal disease, particularly dangerous to kittens. Effective vaccines are available.
Symptoms can include loss of appetite, vomiting, diarrhea, dehydration and lethargy. Cornell University also describes panleukopenia as highly contagious and potentially lethal and lists vaccination as a core protection for household cats. (Cornell Feline Health Center)
Local rescuers told Local 10 they believe the version they are encountering this summer is behaving differently than what they have typically seen, including serious illness in adult cats.
Vet technician Amy Dombkowski of Purrr Adoption & Sanctuary said rescuers are “starting to see a different strain” affecting adults as well as kittens.
That characterization should be treated as the rescuers’ observation rather than a confirmed scientific finding about a newly identified strain. Earlier reporting from WPBF 25 also documented South Florida veterinarians warning in July that adult cats were becoming seriously ill.
Cat owners and rescuers react online
Warnings about panleukopenia have also been spreading through Florida’s online cat-rescue community, where users are debating the danger and sharing advice about vaccination and sanitation.
A WPBF Facebook post about the virus drew pushback from at least one commenter over describing an infection as an automatic death sentence.
“It used to be a death sentence but with palliative care now it’s not,” the Facebook user wrote, while urging people to be careful about testing.
That comment represents one internet user’s opinion, not medical guidance. The AVMA continues to describe panleukopenia as potentially fatal while emphasizing that vaccination is highly effective at protecting cats.
Other Florida cat owners and rescue volunteers have focused on preventing the virus from hitching a ride between animals.
In a Reddit discussion about increasing panleukopenia cases in Florida, one user warned people who share animal traps, carriers or kennels to thoroughly clean the equipment between cats.
“Everyone help the babies stay safe,” the commenter wrote. Other users thanked the original poster for spreading the warning.
The Reddit thread predates this week’s South Florida report, but it shows that concerns about rising feline panleukopenia cases have been circulating among Florida rescue communities for months.
A separate public Facebook post from the Street Cat Project of Polk County has also warned followers about reports of outbreaks and urged people handling cats and kittens to quarantine animals carefully.
For South Florida rescuers, vaccination is now at the center of the response.
Heller told Local 10 that Purrr Adoption & Sanctuary is offering low-cost panleukopenia vaccinations as rescuers struggle with sick cats and burned-out foster volunteers.
Pachano said the virus can move quickly before an owner even realizes an animal is sick, making prevention especially important in homes, shelters and rescue operations where multiple cats may come into contact with the same people or equipment.
Cat owners concerned about vaccination status or possible symptoms should contact a veterinarian rather than relying on social-media advice.
