First UK case of coronavirus in cat found by scientists

SCIENTISTS at Glasgow University have identified Covid-19 in a pet cat, the first such confirmed case in the UK.

The cat is believed to have caught the virus from its owners, who had previously tested positive for coronavirus.

Researchers from the West End university made the discovery as part of a joint research programme between different departments in which they screened hundreds of samples for Covid-19 infections in the feline population in the UK.

Some animals, such as ducks, chickens and pigs, appear to be resistant to the virus, while other animals can contract it.

Professor Margaret Hosie from the MRC-University of Glasgow Centre for Virus Research, who works on the project, said: “There have been sporadic reports of cats from Covid-19 households in Hong Kong, Belgium, France, Germany, Switzerland, Spain and the USA that tested positive for SARS-CoV-2 and were presumed to be infected from their owners, but this is the first report of an infected cat in the UK.

“All available evidence suggests that the cat was infected from its owners, who had previously tested positive. The cat and its owners have since made a full recovery and there was no transmission of the virus to other animals or people in the household.”

Professor William Weir of the University of Glasgow’s School of Veterinary Medicine added: “At present, there is no evidence that cats, dogs or other domestic animals play any role in the epidemiology of human infections with SARS-CoV-2.”