The coronavirus is the first to be transmitted by an owner to a pet

Source: China News Network

The coronavirus is the first to be transmitted by an owner to a pet

International war "epidemic" operations

Science and Technology Daily Beijing, November 3 (Intern reporter Zhang Jiaxin) According to a paper recently published in the journal One Health, the City of Hope Translational Genomics Institute (TGEN) reported for the first time the first case of the new crown virus transmitted from owners to pets in the United States.

This is one of 5 pilot studies of animal coronavirus tested nationwide in the United States. Tgen's study is the only study to sequence genomes from pet and human samples.

The case occurred in Arizona, USA. Pet owners, cats and dogs were all infected with the same strain of covid-19, b.1.575, a lesser-publicized strain that caused early COVID-19. According to information provided by Tgen, there are currently fewer than 25 recorded cases of infection with this strain in Arizona. To date, more than 46,000 positive samples from the state have been sequenced for genomes.

Lead author hayley Yaglum, an epidemiologist at Tgen, said: "The case in our study demonstrates for the first time the possibility of the virus being transmitted from their owners to animals in their homes. ”

The researchers reasoned that the virus was transmitted from pet owners to dogs or cats, or both. The animals are confined to apartments and therefore have little chance of being exposed to the virus, so the likelihood of pets infecting their owners is slim. At the same time, there are no recorded cases of COVID-19 transmitted from pets to owners worldwide.

The researchers were unable to determine whether the dogs or cats infected first, or whether one of them infected the other, which is both possible.

Yaglum said pet owners should protect their pets by getting vaccinated. If they do have COVID-19, they should wear a mask when they are with their pet, and they should avoid hugging, kissing, and having them lick their faces or sleep with them.

The researchers say owners don't have to be completely isolated from their pets, but when they show symptoms of COVID-19, contact should be reduced as much as possible.