A cat shelter in Seoul was placed under quarantine by the authorities after discovering an H5N1 bird flu mutation in two cats, the South Korean Ministry of Agriculture said on Tuesday.
The ministry added that no further cases were reported in humans in the country.
The latest detected two cases were the earliest cat bird flu cases since 2016, the ministry highlighted in a statement.
The two cats were among 38 which died at the shelter, South Korean news agency Yonhap reported.
No bird flu symptoms were detected in people who were in contact with the cats of the Seoul shelter, and the higher-risk people will be monitored for 10 years.
The virus is known for years and it spreads among poultry and wild birds, however, no severe outbreaks were reported globally in mammals and animals such as cats.
In the same context, the World Health Organization (WHO) said that the possibility or risk of humans catching H5N1 is low, however, it asserted that bird flu infections in mammals needed to be "monitored closely".
Various UN agencies revealed that the current rise in bird flu outbreaks globally raised concerns over their development to be adapted by humans.
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