The British variant of Covid-19, detected for the first time in dogs and cats

By 22/03/2021 Portal

The British variant of SARS-CoV-2 (B.1.1.7), which spreads more easily and quickly between people and also appears more lethal, has been detected for the first time in animals. Two different groups of researchers report the infection with this strain of Covid-19 in a cat and a dog that share the same home in Texas (USA) and in three other pets analyzed at a veterinary center on the outskirts of London.

French and British researchers analyzed pets admitted to the cardiology unit at the Ralph Veterinary Referral Center outside London. The hospital had noticed a sharp increase in the number of dogs and cats with myocarditis, which had gone from 1.4% to 12.8% in just two months.

According to Science magazine, the team examined eleven pets: eight cats and three dogs. None had a history of heart disease, but all had symptoms ranging from lethargy and loss of appetite to rapid breathing and fainting. Laboratory tests revealed heart abnormalities, including irregular heartbeats and fluid in the lungs, all symptoms seen in human cases of Covid-19.

Seven of the animals were tested for SARS-CoV-2 and three tested positive, all with the B.1.1.7 variant, the team reports on the preprint server bioRxiv. Antibody tests on four of the other animals showed that two of them had been infected with the virus. The owners of five of the eleven pets tested positive, all before their animals developed symptoms.

In a second study, researchers at the University of Texas detected the British variant in a cat and a dog from the same household in Brazos County. The owner was also diagnosed in February. The pets showed no symptoms at the time they were tested, but the owner reported that both began sneezing several weeks later. All of the US and UK animals have since recovered, although one of the British cats relapsed and had to be put down.

"SARS-CoV-2 surveillance and genetic investigations of the virus from infected pets are vitally important to understanding the transmission and evolution of the virus, as well as predicting what may happen next," says Sarah Hamer, veterinarian and epidemiologist at the Texas A&M College of Veterinary Medicine and Biomedical Sciences and principal investigator of the study that discovered the variant in this North American state.

Wear a mask in front of your dog
The researchers explain that the objectives of the study are to learn more about the transmission of SARS-CoV-2 between people and animals, the potential impact of the virus on animal health and whether animals can be a reservoir of the virus. “We hope to continue our study as the level of human vaccination increases to understand whether our unvaccinated pets can continue to participate in the transmission cycles of the virus, including emerging variants,” Hamer said.

Viral genome sequences from the dog and cat infected with B.1.1.7 will be rapidly available in a public database for use by the broader scientific community so that comparisons can be made with other variants around the world. .

“Pets can also become infected with SARS-CoV-2 variants,” said Casey Barton Behravesh, director of the One Health Office at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). "Because this virus can spread between people and animals, it is important that people with Covid-19 stay away from pets and other animals, just as they do with other people, to prevent the spread of this virus to others. animals". If contact cannot be avoided, infected people should wear a mask around pets and wash their hands before and after interacting with them.

Of course, according to the information available to date, the risk of pets transmitting SARS-CoV-2 to people is considered low.