There’s no reason to panic, assures Durban SPCA
There have been no reported cases of felines testing positive in SA.
IN a media statement on Friday, Durban and Coast SPCA said an earlier report on felines testing positive for the coronavirus referred to cases in the USA, Belgium and Hong Kong.
“Covid-19 is a new virus with new discoveries being made every day. So far only a handful of felines – wild and domesticated have tested positive for the virus which they most likely contracted through their carers/families,” read the statement from Tanya Fleischer of the SPCA .
“There is currently no record of any animal to human or animal to animal transmissions recorded. There is also currently No record of any feline positive cases in South Africa.”
“If someone in your household is ill or shows any signs of having contracted the Covid-19 virus, we recommend that person refrains from caring for any pets in the house and practices social distancing from them as well. If that is not possible, we recommend wearing a cloth face mask around your pets and wash your hands thoroughly with soap before and after interactions with your pets and do not hug or kiss your pet.”
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“There is no reason to panic, your pets are a part of your family and as such please treat them with love and kindness at all times, this virus is new, this virus is unknown but together we can get through this and all animals need our love and support now more than ever. Even after lockdown don’t allow your pets to interact with any other animals and keep them away from crowded areas.
For animal related emergencies please contact us on 083 212 6103 (Inspectorate) / 083 661 0997 (Veterinary emergencies).
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