Two pet cats, one in Hong Kong and one in Belgium, have tested positive for COVID-19. Both of these cats lived in homes with COVID-19 positive owners.
A tiger at New York’s Bronx Zoo is the first known case of COVID-19 in an animal in the United States. Several tigers and lions at the zoo showed symptoms including a dry cough, wheezing, and lack of appetite. All of the animals at the zoo are believed to have been infected by a zoo employee who showed signs of COVID-19. These zoo animals are expected to recover. Dr. Jane Rooney, a veterinarian and USDA official, tells the Associated Press, “There doesn’t appear to be, at this time, any evidence that suggests that the animals can spread the virus to people or that they can be a source of infection in the United States.”
The American Veterinary Medical Association also reports on preliminary results of “experimental infection” of domestic cats, ferrets, and dogs in China, but cautions that these results don’t represent real-world circumstances and should not be overly interpreted.
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