Animals & Coronavirus

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First, the two dogs in Hong Kong do not appear to have been truly positive. The “weak positive” test on the first dog was followed by a negative test result from rectal swab and fecal sample. The “weak positive” result, according to the American Veterinary Medical Association moreover, “does not distinguish between RNA detected from intact virus and that detected from fragments of viral RNA;” the latter of which has not resulted in an infection. Although there were further “weak positive” results with follow up testing, ultimately “Virus isolation was performed with negative results.” Unsurprisingly, the dog did not show any symptoms.

The second dog had positive results on one test and then negative results on a confirmatory test. The other dog living in the same house tested negative both times. “Neither dog has shown signs of respiratory disease“.

Second, a positive result in Winston [one dog in the US] has not been confirmed by the U.S. Department of Agriculture via the testing of additional samples. Neither the USDA nor the AVMA have updated their websites to confirm a positive result in the dog.

Third, a study which tried to deliberately infect dogs with SARS-CoV-2, the virus which causes COVID-19, found that none of the dogs acquired it, despite being injected with a massive dose directly up their noses (over 30 times greater than would be found in nature).* Although some of the dogs initially tested positive by rectal swab, the tests are not foolproof. All the dogs were ultimately found to be negative upon tissue analysis. Ultimately, the study concluded that dogs are not susceptible to COVID-19.

Two cats with mild respiratory issues in New York, from different parts of the state, tested positive for COVID-19. They are the first two pet cats to test positive in the U.S. Outside the U.S., only two other cats have tested positive.