Friday, 06 March 2020 12:01

Dog tests positive for coronavirus

Written by Staff Reporters

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More than 3,000 people have died from the coronavirus outbreak.

A dog has tested positive for Covid-19 in Hong Kong, but experts say people should not panic about animal to human transmission.

The Agriculture, Fisheries and Conservation Department (AFCD) in Hong Kong announced earlier this week that a pet dog had repeatedly tested weak positive for Covid-19.

The dog is showing no symptoms of the illness, however, the weak positive indicates a low-level infection with the virus.

More than 3,000 people have died from the coronavirus outbreak.

Experts from the School of Public Health of The University of Hong Kong, the College of Veterinary Medicine and Life Sciences of the City University of Hong Kong and the World Organisation for Animal Health (OIE) have agreed unanimously that the dog has a low-level infection that was likely caused by human-to-animal transmission.

An AFCD spokesman says this is currently no evidence that pet animals can be a source of infection of Covid-19 or that the virus makes them sick.

The OIE says that the Covid-19 virus is a close relative of other coronaviruses found circulating in Rhinolophusbat (Horseshoe Bat) populations. It says it appears possible that transmission may have occurred from an intermediate host.

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