A California man says his two cats died and a third was hospitalized after he fed them raw milk recalled for bird flu risk.

Bird flu has been on the rise in Washington state and one sanctuary was hit hard: 20 big cats – more than half of the facility’s population – died over the course of weeks.

A big cat sanctuary in Washington is temporarily closed and quarantined after bird flu killed 20 wild cats there, including cougars, bobcats and a tiger.

A third cat, Big Boy, was in hospital for a week before tests showed the animal was infected with the bird flu virus

Scientists and volunteers with the Olympic Cougar Project said they have the opportunity now to study bird flu in wild animals – to hopefully prevent it from spreading to people.

San Bernardino resident Joseph Journell says he lost two beloved cats after they drank raw milk contaminated with bird flu and is threatening to sue Raw Farm owner Mark McAfee.

"While this voluntary recall only applies to raw whole milk and cream, due to multiple bird flu detections in the company's operation, the California Department of Public Health [

In a concerning development from California, multiple cat fatalities have been attributed to the consumption of raw milk contaminated with the H5N1 bird flu virus. Joseph Journal, a local resident, suffered the loss of two beloved cats—a 14-year-old tabby and a 4-year-old tuxedo—after they ingested the dairy product,