First case of cat getting infected by coronavirus reported

Belgium: Refuting yet another conjecture of the novel coronavirus infecting only humans, recently, a news confirming a cat in Belgium being infected by the deadly virus has distressed pet lovers.

The feline reportedly contracted the infection from its owner who started showing COVID-19 symptoms just a week before. Later, it bared severe symptoms like diarrhoea, vomiting and breathing difficulties. On being tested, the veterinarian found traces of coronavirus in the cat’s faeces.

Addressing a press conference, Steven van Gucht, head of viral diseases at Belgian Institute of Health said that this is an isolated case because it involves human-to-animal transmission and not the other way around.

According to the Belgian health authorities, the feline was already suffering from respiratory and digestive ailments before she got infected with the virus. They also mentioned that by far there has been no evidence of an animal-to-human transmission case.

Daily Star, a tabloid daily of the United Kingdom, reported that the cat is the third case of human-to-animal transmission of coronavirus. Earlier, two dogs were reportedly infected in Hong Kong from COVID-19 positive humans. One of them was a Pomeranian who contracted the infection from its sexagenarian owner.

The pup didn’t survive after being released from quarantine.