CHAMPAIGN, Ill. (WCIA) – As COVID numbers drop for people, veterinarians identified the first positive case in a dog in the state. A Chicago vet sent the sample to the College of Veterinary Medicine at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign. And sure enough, it came back positive.
But, Dr. Will Sander – an associate professor of preventative medicine and public health – said there’s no need to panic for your pets. Observed cases have been fairly mild.
Across the U.S., roughly 100 dogs have tested positive for COVID. One Illinois dog has shown respiratory symptoms since January.
Although they’re not sure where the dog caught it from, doctors have a hunch it could’ve been from a pet-sitter. The sitter became sick with COVID while staying with the dog.
Doctors say not to worry too much. If your dog is showing symptoms, consider every possibility.
“Certainly it’s possible for them to get the disease, but there’s a lot of other bigger, more common causes for dogs developing a cough or breathing difficulty or things like that,” Dr. Sander said.
But what if your dog catches COVID?
“I wouldn’t be overly concerned. I think you should always treat your pets like you would anybody else in your house who you want to protect from COVID. If you think you have COVID, try to wear a mask around them. Try to have somebody else take care of your pet instead. Wash your hands before and after handling your pet.”
Dr. Sander said the risk for dog-to-dog transmission may be minimal. There’s no evidence yet for dog-to-human transmission.
He also said the dog is recovering slowly but appears to be doing much better.
