Can Pets Get Monkeypox? Dog Gets Virus From Owners' Bed

With nearly 31,800 cases of monkeypox detected in at least 80 countries, including the U.S., what is believed to be the first case of human-to-pet transmission has been reported in a dog.

The monkeypox case was confirmed in a 4-year-old Italian greyhound earlier this summer shortly after the dog's owners, who live in France, first showed symptoms of the virus, according to a study published in the Lancet health journal in August.

The dog's owners were found to have monkeypox after developing ulcers and rashes, which was confirmed at the Pitié-Salpêtrière Hospital in Paris on June 10.

The dog shared the same bed as the couple and may have licked the men, who said they were "careful to prevent their dog from contact with other pets or humans from the onset of their own symptoms." However, less than two weeks after the couple received their monkeypox diagnosis, the dog began to display symptoms of the virus.

The dog was tested by Sorbonne University researchers in Paris who confirmed the dog had the same strain of monkeypox as its owners.

In a study, the researchers wrote, "To the best of our knowledge, the kinetics of symptom onset in both patients and, subsequently, in their dog suggest human-to-dog transmission of monkeypox virus."

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has said that transmission of monkeypox can occur through skin-to-skin contact, including through bodily fluids, contact with rash or scabs, touching fabrics that have been used by someone with monkeypox, or contact with respiratory secretions. However, it was unclear if this included human-to-animal contact.

Monkeypox has primary been found in wild animals in endemic countries including western and central Africa and some captive primates in Europe.

Researchers of the study continued in their report by saying, "Our findings should prompt debate on the need to isolate pets from monkeypox virus-positive individuals. We call for further investigation on secondary transmissions via pets."

Researchers of the study maintained "whether domesticated cats and dogs could be a vector for monkeypox virus is unknown."

The World Health Organization has called the monkeypox outbreak a global health emergency, while the U.S. announced it was a national public health emergency in early August.