homeoanimal.com
The coronavirus 2019 (or COVID-19) disease, caused by the
SARS-CoV-2 virus, is now on the lips of all news readers
around the world. The epidemic which started in Wuhan,
China, is now raging across the planet and was therefore
declared a pandemic on March 11 by the director of the World
Health Organization.
As this kind of test requires a general anesthesia on such exotic animals, and since these animals had a high anesthetic risk due to their symptoms, it was agreed to test only one tiger for COVID-19, for their safety. It is therefore assumed that these other zoo felines may also have been affected by this coronavirus.
- So, what does this mean for our dear pets?
Until now, we thought they were safe from this highly contagious virus. Is this still the case?
Do we need to take extra precautions to protect our dogs and cats from COVID-19?
Certainly, the large family of coronaviruses includes around 40 different viruses and some can actually infect cats and dogs. But what about the dreaded COVID-19 (SARS-CoV-2)?
The rest of this article will answer your questions.
CAN HUMANS TRANSMIT COVID-19 TO ANIMALS?
As there had been no study on the subject and no case had been reported until recently in animals, the scientific community assumed that the risk of transmission of COVID-19 from a human to an animal was minimal, or even non-existent. However, the recent case of the tiger in New York, the first animal that tested positive for the virus in the United States, has changed this theory.
In addition, a certain number of cases of COVID-19 in dogs and cats have also been reported worldwide.
That said, although it’s possible, the risk of pets being infected with this disease still seems very low. The cases that exist to date are very isolated.
Studies are underway to better understand the transmission of COVID-19 in animals, but for the moment, no scientific study officially confirms the risk of transmission of the virus to our pets.