Hantavirus: The Danger Posed by Mice – and How ZeroMOUSE™ 2.0 Protects Your Home

The key facts at a glance: The Hantavirus is a serious pathogen that occurs in Germany and is transmitted almost exclusively through contact with infected mice. Cats that bring mice home can increase the infection risk for their owners – not through the cat itself, but through the prey animal. ZeroMOUSE™ 2.0 keeps exactly these mice outside.

What is the Hantavirus?

The Hantavirus is not an exotic pathogen from faraway lands – it has been native to Germany for years. It is a zoonosis, meaning a disease that can be transmitted from animals to humans. It is caused by various hantavirus types, of which the following are particularly relevant in Germany:

Puumala virus (transmitted by the bank vole) and the Dobrava-Belgrade virus (transmitted by the striped field mouse).

The name "Hanta" derives from the Hantan River in Korea, where the virus was first described. Today it is found worldwide – and is also a relevant health topic in this country.

How dangerous is the Hantavirus?

The good news first: In Germany, most Hanta infections run a mild course. An infection with the hantavirus variants common in Germany is frequently symptom-free or involves mild, flu-like complaints.

Nevertheless, the virus should not be underestimated. Typical symptoms are fever lasting three to four days with back, head and limb pain, which usually appear about two to four weeks after infection. Characteristic of the common form of the illness in Germany is kidney involvement.

In severe forms, a drop in blood pressure, shock and kidney failure can occur – this severe form is fatal in 5 to 15 percent of cases. With the Puumala virus that is common in Germany, the mortality rate is fortunately well below one percent.

In Germany, according to reporting data, 423 people fell ill with the viral infection in 2024. In epidemic years – such as 2012 – case numbers can be considerably higher: In 2012, almost 2,900 cases were reported nationwide.

There is so far no vaccine or specific antiviral therapy. The most effective protection is therefore prevention – that is, consistently preventing mice and their excretions from entering the living area.

Which animals transmit the Hantavirus?

The Hantavirus is primarily a rodent virus. Hantaviruses are transmitted mainly by rodents such as mice and rats, and less frequently also by bats and moles. In Germany, the most important carriers are:

• Bank vole – the most common carrier, especially in the beech and mixed forests of southern and western Germany
• Striped field mouse – responsible for infections in the north and east of Germany
• Yellow-necked mouse, common vole, field vole, brown rat – also known as carriers

The infected animals excrete the pathogens via saliva, urine and faeces. Humans can become infected if they inhale the pathogens or come into contact with contaminated materials. The virus survives in the environment for several days to months, depending on conditions.

Is every mouse infected with the Hantavirus?

No – but you cannot tell by looking at a mouse. The hantavirus risk fluctuates strongly from year to year. Especially after so-called beech mast years, bank voles can multiply strongly, and in the following year the risk of Puumala hantavirus infections then rises in certain regions.

In risk areas and peak years, the infection rate among bank voles can locally increase considerably. Anyone who has a mouse brought into the house – whether dead or alive – is therefore carrying a potential source of infection directly into their own four walls. This is precisely where the risk lies that many cat owners underestimate.

Can cats transmit the Hantavirus?

This is one of the most frequent questions – and the answer is reassuring, but with an important caveat:

According to current knowledge, cats cannot become significantly infected with the Hantavirus. They could carry the virus, but show no typical symptoms and do not fall ill from it. Transmission to humans via the cat is considered extremely unlikely.

⚠ Important: However, if the cat brings home an infected mouse, there is an infection risk that originates from the mouse itself.

The cat is not the problem – it is the mouse that it brings in. The mouse's saliva, urine and faeces can carry the virus into the home. Chewing on the prey, mouse droppings on the floor, dust stirred up during cleaning – all of these are potential transmission routes.

The underestimated risk: The cat as a bridge

Outdoor cats are natural-born hunters. They roam through forests, meadows and fields – exactly the biotopes where bank voles and striped field mice are at home. What is a hunting success for the cat means a potential health risk for the household.

The scenario: The cat catches a bank vole in the forest, drags it through the cat flap – and proudly deposits it in the living room. The mouse may already be dead. Nevertheless, its fur, its saliva, its urine contain hantaviruses. When picking it up, when cleaning, when merely stirring up dust, the virus can be transmitted.

Hantavirus & ZeroMOUSE™ 2.0: Prevention begins before the cat flap

The most effective measure against hantavirus infections is clear according to the Robert Koch Institute: prevent contact with rodents and their excretions. In the context of outdoor