Cat Infected By Owners With COVID-19 In UK Has Fully Recovered Following Quarantine

A cat in the U.K. diagnosed with the deadly COVID-19 disease has reportedly made full recovery after being quarantined over the weekend.

The feline, identified as a 17-year-old Pomeranian, was believed to have caught the COVID-19 virus from its owners. The cat, whose name was not disclosed, underwent testing at the Animal and Plant Health Agency (APHA) laboratory in Weybridge, U.K. on Wednesday (July 22), The Guardian reported.

The news outlet further reported that the pet cat only experienced mild symptoms. The test result was reportedly confirmed by the government.

Experts reportedly believed that the pet cat was not responsible for transmitting the COVID-19 virus to its owners or other humans and animals.

There were reports that some pets across the world, including cats and dogs, had been infected by the COVID-19 virus after close contact with people who have COVID-19, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention stated on its official website.

Although information and data about these transmissions to animals were limited, experts believed that the risk of COVID-19 transmission from animals to humans could be considered as low.

As such, the CDC suggested the owners treat their pets as they would treat a human family member. In that case, owners were advised to not let their pets interact with people other than the ones inside the household.

CDC also suggested that if any member of the family became sick, he or she must be immediately isolated from the members of the family — and yes, including pets.

There were previous reports of the first dog which caught the virus from its owners in Hong Kong. Unfortunately, after the medical experts reportedly declared that the canine was disease-free, it passed away.

Despite not having significant evidence of virus transmission from the pet cat to its owners, Christine Middlemiss, Chief Veterinary Officer at APHA laboratory, said they would closely monitor the situation and update the owners accordingly, Daily Mail reported.

The news outlet further reported that the feline, tagged as the first cat in the U.K. to have been infected by the virus, was initially diagnosed with a common cat respiratory infection. However, researchers from MRC-University at Glasglow Center for Virus Research confirmed that it was infected with SARS-CoV-2 or known as the COVID-19 virus.