Bad news: cats can.
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With the coronavirus spreading rapidly around the world, some pet owners have raised concerns about whether their pets can become infected and pass the virus along to other animals and, oh yeah, people.
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According to a report in Nature, researchers at Harbin Veterinary Research Institute in China have concluded:
Cats can be infected with the COVID-19 coronavirus and spread it to other cats.
“The results suggest that cats should be considered an element in the effort to control COVID-19, but that they’re not likely to be a major factor in the spread of the disease.”
The researchers also found that ferrets are also highly susceptible to coronavirus
The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends that people infected with COVID-19 limit contact with their cats, including avoiding petting, being licked and sharing food and utensils.
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Some good news: dogs are not susceptible to coronavirus infection.
Nor are chickens, pigs, and ducks likely to catch the virus.
Whew.
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Update: It’s reported that 4 tigers and a lion at the Bronx zoo are infected with the coronavirus. Contact tracking has ID’ed an asymptomatic infected zookeeper as the carrier. Raises a couple of questions:
- Why did the zookeeper violate the 6-feet social distancing rule?
- How did they get scarce test kits to use on lions and tigers?
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April 7, 2020 at 4:20 pm |
I read yesterday that the tests used were a veterinary version, not like the ones used for humans, so the zoo didn’t take any tests away from those needed by hospitals.