Hong Kong Dog Likely First Human-to-Animal Coronavirus Infection

(Bloomberg) -- The pet dog of a coronavirus patient in Hong Kong has been confirmed to be infected with a “low level” of the virus, marking what’s likely the first known instance of human-to-animal transmission.

The dog had tested “weak positive” for the virus last week, raising the question of whether it had been contaminated by traces of the virus in its surroundings or genuinely infected with a disease that has now claimed more than 3,200 lives globally. Further tests confirmed the virus in the pet’s nasal and oral cavities, “which indicates a low-level of infection,” Hong Kong’s agricultural and fisheries department said in statement late Wednesday.

“It is likely to be a case of human-to-animal transmission,” the department said, noting that it had consulted with experts from the University of Hong Kong, the City University of Hong Kong and the World Organisation for Animal Health. The dog has not shown any symptoms of Covid-19 and will remain under quarantine until it tests negative, the department said.

Much is still not known about the novel coronavirus, which has spread around the world after emerging in central China late last year. Early research suggested the disease may have been transferred to humans from bats, sparking a contagion that has now infected more than 94,000 people and pushed the global economy toward its first contraction since 2009.

The World Organisation for Animal Health has cautioned that there is no evidence of pets transmitting the virus to humans: “However, because animals and people can sometimes share diseases ... it is still recommended that people who are sick with Covid-19 limit contact with companion and other animals until more information is known about the virus.”

The infected dog is a Pomeranian, according to the South China Morning Post. It will be returned to its owner once it has been declared free of infection, the Hong Kong agricultural and fisheries department said.

To contact the reporters on this story: Adveith Nair in London at anair29@bloomberg.net;Dominic Lau in Hong Kong at dlau92@bloomberg.net

To contact the editors responsible for this story: Stuart Wallace at swallace6@bloomberg.net, Tracy Alloway, Michael Patterson

©2020 Bloomberg L.P.