Web MD reported that a veterinary clinic in the United Kingdom found that COVID-19 can infect dogs and cats resulting a swollen heart condition known as myocarditis.
The study was small, but it found that dogs and cats can be infected with the Alpha variant of COVID-19. Many of the owners of these pets had respiratory symptoms several weeks before their pets became ill and had tested positive for COVID-19.
The study followed the cases of four cats and two dogs who had severe myocarditis. Luckily, most of the pets rebounded. All improved after treatment except one cat who relapsed had to be put to sleep.
Cases of myocarditis had increased at the clinic and the vets realized that the owners had reported being infected by COVID-19 prior to bringing in their pets for treatment. “It is quite compelling that there was an infection in the household and then a few weeks later, clinical signs appear in our pets,” Dr. Luca Ferasin said. “The big difference was that while the owners were experiencing respiratory signs with fever and typical signs of COVID, our pets were presented primarily with a heart disease.”
The symptoms presented very much the same, with dogs and cats that were depressed, lethargic, and they lost their appetite. 1.5 % of pets at eh clinic had heart inflammation Prior to December of 2020. Between December and March of 2021 12.5 % of the pets had the condition. None of the animals had traditional symptoms of COVID-19 like difficulty breathing.
As a precaution, Ferasin advised pet owners who get infected with Covid-19 to avoid contact with their pets, just as they would with other humans.