u/ceo_of_dumbassery

With the recent confirmed cases of bird flu in Tassie, I thought I'd give a heads up to fellow cat owners about the risk to their cats.

Cats are highly susceptible to the H5N1 virus (bird flu), and unfortunately, it has a mortality rate of up to 70%. Symptoms include loss of appetite, lethargy, fever, eye or nose discharge, sneezing, struggling to breathe, blindness, and neurological symptoms such as tremors, seizures and loss of coordination. There is no vaccine for cats, and not much in the way of treatment for the virus. However, you should still take your cats to the vet if they start showing symptoms.

What else you can do:

• keep your cats contained; indoors or in a catio to keep cats separated from potentially infectious animals and animal droppings

• avoid feeding uncooked meat and dairy products

• disinfect yourself and clothes/shoes before entering your home/interacting with your cat if you've been in contact with livestock or sick animals, or have been in areas where birds gather, such as bird feeders

• report sick or dead birds (and other animals suspected of carrying bird flu) to the Emergency Animal Disease Hotline on 1800 675 888 or report online at https://nre.tas.gov.au/biosecurity-tasmania/animal-biosecurity/animal-health/poultry-and-pigeons/bird-flu/report-sick-or-dead-birds

Please keep your pets safe!

Source: https://www.webmd.com/pets/cats/bird-flu-in-cats

Someone I know has been renting out rooms in their house for the past few years while receiving centrelink payments. They live there as well, and have been getting roughly $600+ per week from the renters (I don't know the exact amount other than it's definitely over 600). The renters aren't related to the landlord, and are on separate tenancy agreements, not boarders or lodgers agreements (although centrelink may class them as lodgers?). The landlord hasn't been declaring any of the rent as income. They said that centrelink told them that it isn't classed as income because the rent goes directly towards their mortgage repayments. Is that true? It feels incorrect to me, and from what I've researched it seems to be incorrect but I may be reading it wrong.

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If it isn't true, should I report them? And what would happen to them if they were found out? I'm assuming they'd at least have to pay back all the money they received from centrelink.