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A French bulldog and a mixed breed dog tested positive for Sars-CoV-2 in Curitiba. The cases were detected last week and recently confirmed by the Federal University of Paraná (UFPR), which coordinates a multicenter study on the coronavirus in pets in 6 capitals of the country. In October, researchers from the University of Curitiba helped teams from the Federal University of Mato Grosso (UFMT) identify the virus in a cat in Cuiabá.
The animals had some sneezes and are fine. The dog keepers were also confirmed to have a coronavirus diagnosis. The French bulldog guardian told the research team that he tested positive for the virus last week and noticed a “slight runny nose” in the pet. The two used to share the same bed.
The guardian’s second test was negative, but the dog already had a small amount of virus in its body and it tested positive. The day after the result, the researchers retested the dog, which this time tested negative.
The second case also involved an adult male, albeit of mixed race. The dog’s guardian was also infected, as well as the other neighbors in the house. According to her, her four dogs had sporadic episodes of sneezing, but only one tested positive.
The data will be registered with the Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock and Supply (MAPA). The samples will be sent for confirmation at the TECSA Animal Laboratory, to be tested in another reference laboratory. There is no record yet that dogs and cats are transmitters of Covid-19.
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In a statement, Alexander Biondo, professor and coordinator of the study, explained that animals can be infected with the Sars-CoV-2 virus, but that does not mean that the animals will have the disease or are transmitters. There are already studies that indicate that cats can be transmitted to other cats, but there is no data on this for dogs.
Alexander Biondo also warns that the most intimate contact between humans and pets can infect animals, indicating the distance and the use of a mask in case of confirmation of Covid-19 for guardians.
The UFPR research will be carried out in Curitiba (PR), Belo Horizonte (MG), Campo Grande (MS), Recife (PE), São Paulo (SP) and Cuiabá (MT). In addition to evaluating biological samples, the researchers will collect blood to perform serology on the animals. The objective is to give a definitive answer on the susceptibility and the role of dogs and cats as reservoirs of the virus.
