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FILE – In this Friday, May 8, 2020 file photo, a cat cafe owner checks the temperature of one of his cats in Bangkok, Thailand. According to a study published on Wednesday, May 13, 2020, cats can transmit the new coronavirus to each other without any of them having any symptoms. (AP Photo / Sakchai Lalit) Associated Press
- A pet cat in the UK has tested positive for COVID-19, the first such case in the UK, according to a government press release.
- Experts say the cat was likely infected by its owners, who tested positive for the coronavirus, in what is believed to be a rare case of human-to-animal transmission.
- There is still no evidence that pets can transmit the virus to people, according to the World Organization for Animal Health.
- Visit the Insider home page for more stories.
A pet cat in the UK has tested positive for the new coronavirus, according to a UK government press release. This is the first such case in Britain, and one of only a dozen worldwide registered by the World Organization for Animal Health.
Experts believe the cat was infected by its owners, who also tested positive for COVID-19. Both the animal and humans have fully recovered, according to the press release, and the virus was not transferred to other people or animals in the home.
An animal coronavirus infection is still considered rare. In April, after a couple of cats tested positive for the virus, experts said there was no reason to believe that pets could transmit the virus to humans, and that remains the case.
“This is a very rare event with infected animals detected to date that only show mild clinical signs and recover within a few days,” said UK Veterinary Director Christine Middlemiss in the press release. “There is no evidence to suggest that pets directly transmit the virus to humans.”
In the past few months, several other domestic cats, as well as several big cats at a zoo, have tested positive for the virus, Business Insider previously reported. There has been some research to suggest that cats can transmit the virus to other cats, even if they have no symptoms.
At least one dog has also previously tested “weakly positive” for the virus without showing symptoms, suggesting that canines may be carriers of the virus, although it is unclear whether they can actually get sick.
As such, health authorities have recommended that companion animals also practice social distancing and that people wash their hands thoroughly before and after interacting with animals.
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