Cat catches coronavirus
COVID-19 has been transmitted from a human to a pet for the first time in North Cyprus, scientists at Near East University (NEU) announced on Thursday.
The investigations revealed that a family in the TRNC found to be infected with the British variant of SARS-CoV-2 also infected their pet cat with the same variant.
The studies were conducted by Prof Dr Tamer Şanlıdağ, Prof Dr Eser Özgencil, Assoc Prof
Dr Mahmut Çerkez Ergören, Assoc Prof Dr Serkan Sayıner, Asst Assoc Prof Dr Mehmet Ege İnce and research assistant veterinarian Ali Çürükoğlu.
To date, studies conducted around the world have suggested that pets can become infected three to six weeks after Covid-19 patients, according to NEU.
However, researchers there established that the cat in the TRNC was infected at the same time as its family members.
“Thus, for the first time in the world, human-topet transmission was found to occur within the first 10 days.”
Near East University Animal Hospital vets explained that the British variant infection caused a “variety of clinical symptoms in the cat, including cardiac and ocular abnormalities”.
It was also revealed that the family in question had been quarantined following the diagnosis of Covid-19 and had entrusted their pet to another family, unaware that they had also infected their cat.
While observing the symptoms of the cat infected with the British variant of coronavirus, NEU said it is also monitoring whether or not there will be cat-tohuman transmission. NEU acting Rector Prof Şanlıdağ said: “We are also monitoring people who come into contact with the cat infected with the British variant. We will discover whether the virus that passed from person to cat can also be transmitted from cat to humans again.”
Prof Ergören of NEU’s Covid-19 PCR Diagnostic Laboratory said: “This result showed that the SARSCoV-2 British variant can be passed from human to human as well as from human to domestic cat. This is an important discovery to bear in mind in the fight against the Covid-19 outbreak.”