A French study shows that pets, especially cats and ferrets, can catch the coronavirus.
by Celine Peschard
On October 10, 2020, Denmark and the Netherlands announced the slaughter of farmed mink, contaminated with Covid-19. Something to worry fans of domestic animals … As a reminder, our friends the animals were the subject of studies from the start of the pandemic, the virus coming a priori from species such as bats and pangolin . First pet tested: ferrets. In West France, infectious disease specialist Daniel Marc explains : "it was one of the first species to be tested experimentally – by nasal inoculation of the virus – in several independent laboratories, because it is the animal model of choice for human influenza. And this research has shown that the ferret is a client also for the coronavirus. " While not everyone has a charming mustelid at home, French homes are full of cats (8.6 million) or dogs (6 million). And according to a new French study, they too are at risk …
From human to pet
On October 14, 2020, the VetAgro Sup veterinary school published the results of the COVIDAC project, dedicated to the study of Covid-19 and companion animals. The method used by the researchers: take blood samples from two separate groups of animals. The first, composed of 47 animals (13 dogs and 34 cats), considered to be at high risk "because they came from an outbreak in which at least one human COVID-19 case had been diagnosed." And the second group, at moderate risk, consisted of 38 animals (16 cats and 22 dogs) whose owner status was unknown. Results, at the end of the study, only one cat in the "moderate risk" group had antibodies against SARS-CoV-2. But in the "high risk" group, more than 20% of the animals (8 cats and 2 dogs) tested positive.
Discover the health benefits of animals
If this serological survey did not make it possible to identify the exact origin of the contaminations, it is probably the human being responsible, the study specifying: "The fact that the risk for a domestic carnivore to be infected is 8.1 times higher if it resides in a person positive for Covid-19 constitutes a strong argument of the human origin of their infection".
Should you protect your animal?
Despite these at first glance alarming results, nothing to panic. Indeed, "SARS-CoV-2 infection of domestic animals is largely asymptomatic under natural conditions", explains the study by VetAgro Sup. Pending further serological analyzes on a larger scale, the National Academy of Medicine and the Veterinary Academy of France nonetheless urges caution: in a note dated July, it recommends "to avoid any contact between people infected with SARS-CoV-2, or suspected of being so, with their pets, especially if they are ferrets or cats, and to observe the same barrier measures only to prevent contamination of those around them (hand washing, masks, etc.). " Preventive measures and a golden rule: once an animal has been adopted, pandemic or not, we keep it with you!