04/03/2020
‼️‼️🦠PET OWNERS: ALL YOU NEED TO KNOW ABOUT CORONAVIRUS🦠‼️‼️
💦👋 Keep calm, and wash your hands! 👋💦
At this stage, there is NO evidence to suggest that there is ANY risk of you contracting COVID-19 from your pet! ✅
⁉️What is coronavirus?
There are literally hundreds of different types of coronaviruses, and the virus that causes COVID-19 is only one of them. The virus itself is actually called SARS-CoV-2, and the disease it causes is COVID-19. For the sake of simplicity we will refer to both the disease and the virus as COVID-19 ✅
Some of these coronaviruses infect humans, and others infect animals. Dogs and cats CAN suffer from certain types of coronaviruses, BUT these are NOT COVID-19, and do not generally cause respiratory symptoms in companion animals. These viruses (eg, canine viral diarrhoea and feline infectious peritonitis) are NOT transmissible to humans ✅
⁉️How does COVID-19 spread?
COVID-19 spreads just like the common cold - through respiratory droplets via sneezing, coughing, or via an infected person depositing these droplets onto a surface and a healthy person picking up these droplets from touching that surface. Common surfaces include door handles, public transport handles, public washrooms etc. An infected person can also transfer the virus to a healthy person via their droplet covered hands ✅
There is NO current evidence that companion animals can be infected with, or are able to spread COVID-19 ✅
⁉️What about that dog in Hong Kong?
The dog that tested positive for coronavirus in Hong Kong last week was owned by a person infected with COVID-19. The dog was NOT sick. Due to the owner’s concern, swabs were taken from the dog’s nose and mouth, and there was a very small amount of the virus found on these swabs. We know that many viruses can live on surfaces and objects, so all this means is that some of the respiratory droplets that came from the infected owner landed on the dog and were inhaled and licked. This does NOT mean that the dog was infected with the virus, just as a door handle or any other surface or object can not be infected with COVID-19 ✅
⁉️What about the greyhounds in QLD with coronavirus?
The recent reports of greyhounds in QLD and other states having coronavirus was in reference to a very common virus that causes diarrhoea (canine viral diarrhoea), and is something that vets see very often. It is NOT COVID-19, and cannot be transmitted to humans ✅
⁉️Do humans or pets need to wear masks?
No. Neither pets or healthy humans should wear masks. Masks should be worn ONLY by people showing signs of respiratory disease in order to stop it spreading. There is no point in wearing a mask in order to prevent you from catching the virus, as this is not effective. The same goes for pets, and they can’t catch it anyway! ✅
⁉️Is there a vaccine for animals against COVID-19?
Dogs are currently vaccinated against ONE form of coronavirus, but this virus causes diarrhoea similar to parvovirus. There is currently no vaccine for humans or animals against COVID-19, and there is currently no evidence that animals even require such a vaccine, as they do not appear to be able to be infected by the virus ✅
⁉️So what do I need to do as a pet owner?
Practice good hygiene! Wash your hands with soap and water after handling your pet, before eating, and after using the bathroom. Carry hand sanitiser with you when out of the house. If you become infected with COVID-19 there is no need to panic! If your pet does need to go to the vet for any reason, it is best to phone your clinic and have a chat with them before visiting ✅
⁉️Do I need to abandon, surrender or euthanase my pet?
NO!! ABSOLUTELY NOT! ❌❌❌❌
If you have any further questions about coronavirus and your pet, or about anything else furfriend related, jump on our website to make an appointment.
~ OnlineVet ~ Wherever you are, whenever you need us ! ~
