COVID Cats?

It is no surprise that veterinarians everywhere are being asked, "Can I get COVID-19 from my cat?" due to the number of articles that have been published about our household pets being exposed and showing symptoms. Dr. Yoshihiro Kawaoka from the University of Wisconsin School of Veterinary Medicine has done some interesting research on transmission from cat to cat.

"In a study published today (May 13, 2020) in the New England Journal of Medicine, scientists in the U.S. and Japan report that in the laboratory, cats can readily become infected with SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19, and may be able to pass the virus to other cats.

Professor of Pathobiological Sciences at the University of Wisconsin School of Veterinary Medicine Yoshihiro Kawaoka led the study, in which researchers administered to three cats SARS-CoV-2 isolated from a human patient. The following day, the researchers swabbed the nasal passages of the cats and were able to detect the virus in two of the animals. Within three days, they detected the virus in all of the cats."

Read more about it here.