Can Pets Get the Coronavirus?

The Coronavirus is spreading, the numbers are increasing in almost all affected countries, so far there have been more than 83,000 infected people worldwide. Until now, it had always been said on the part of experts that only people can fall ill – and that pets like dogs or cats do not develop the coronavirus or to humans transferred can.

Dog Weakly Tested Positive for Coronavirus

However, there is now a case in Hong Kong in which a dog appears to be infected with the globally rampant virus for the first time. As the health authorities reported there on Friday, the dog caught Sars-CoV-2. “Samples from the nasal and oral cavity tested weakly positive for Coronavirus,” said a government spokesman. The dog was owned by a woman (60) and was being treated in an isolation ward in the hospital, it was said. It showed no symptoms.

Coronavirus Infected Pets Must be Quarantined

The Hong Kong government immediately took action on the case: All pets of people infected with the coronavirus must be quarantined. They must be isolated for 14 days and tested regularly for the virus. This is the first time that a government worldwide quarantined pets due to the coronavirus epidemic.

 The Dog Has Only Low Score​​

According to the spokesman, it is unclear whether the dog was actually infected with the virus or whether the low values in the nose and mouth area could possibly come from its environment. The dog did not show any “relevant symptoms”, but as a precaution, it had been quarantined for 14 days, it said. The animal is also subjected to intensive medical monitoring and further tests.

 Dog Owner Tested Positive for the Coronavirus

The dog was taken out of its owner’s house on Wednesday and taken to the isolation ward of a hospital after the 60-year-old woman had tested positive for the novel coronavirus.

So far, 94 cases of infection have been confirmed in the Chinese special administrative region of Hong Kong, where two people died of respiratory disease coronavirus.

Do pet owners have to worry now?

“The last thing we need now is mass hysteria over the possibility of infected dogs,” said Jonathan Ball, a virologist from the University of Nottingham, according to the Süddeutsche Zeitung.

So far there has been no evidence that dogs transmit the virus – the pathogen has to multiply in the cells of the animals and then jump back onto humans. According to Ball, the pathogen was probably accidentally on the dog’s snout.

Do I have to be careful if my dog ​​gets sick? What precautions can I take?

You have to know your dog and cat well and immediately identify any behavioral problems and then seek medical advice. If you find wild animals with behavioral problems, you should keep your distance and do not touch them or call experts and let them handle.