In third case of human to animal transmission of coronavirus, a woman has infected her cat with the infection in Belgium.
The health authorities, however, said that it is not common and the risk of the other way round like animal-to-human transmission is very small.
The Belgian case is the first report of a cat being infected with the new coronavirus, although officials in Hong Kong say two dogs have caught the virus there.
Addressing a presser, Head of viral diseases at the country’s Institute of Health Steven van Gucht said that a cat was found being infected with the virus a week after the woman who owned the animal contracted the infection.
“The cat lived with her owner, who started showing symptoms of the virus a week before the cat did,” he said.
‘It is an isolated case,’ van Gucht said at the press conference today, according to Belgian media. ‘There are no indications that this is common.’
Officials did not identify the woman but said that she came from the Belgian city of Liege in the French-speaking part of the country.
Van Gucht added: ‘The cat had diarrhoea, kept vomiting and had breathing difficulties. The researchers found coronavirus in the cat’s faeces.
‘There is no evidence to date that the virus is being transmitted from pets to humans or other pets,’ Belgian officials say.
The authorities also asked pet owners to call their vet in advance to make arrangements in case of animal contracting coronavirus.
Responding to the Belgian news, the country’s National Council for Animal Protection said there was ‘no reason to abandon your animal’ over virus fears’.
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They added that people should ‘respect the usual rules of hygiene’ which included frequent hand washing before and after stroking pets.
‘The transmission was made from person to the cat, not from cat to person,’ the council said.
‘We have said it from the beginning of the crisis and we will go on to the end: there is no reason to abandon your animal.
