Pet owners can vaccinate their dogs and cats against the coronavirus

As the whole world tries to immunize itself, a study published in the journal Virulence gives us another cause for concern. We will also have to vaccinate pets, say the researchers.

Scientists from the Universities of East Anglia and Minnesota worked with the Earlham Institute in Norwich. They concluded that vaccinating pets may become a necessity in the future if we want to stop the spread of the coronavirus.

Patricia Nanu is a veterinarian and explains why the World Health Organization recommends that people who test positive stay away from their pets.

“If the animal licks its owner, it can contract this virus. But it cannot transmit it. The animal does not contract the disease. As long as it does not have the disease, it does not have a degree of viremia,” explains the veterinarian.

Animals can protect themselves. There is already a vaccine for dogs and cats. However, it is another type of coronavirus that only affects animals.

“In dogs, there is the canine coronavirus that develops a disease with digestive signs. A vaccine for this coronavirus has been administered, but it is not the one that triggers the disease in humans. It is different even if it is from the same species of coronavirus. It is an additional vaccine that we can give the animal ”, says Patricia Nanu.

If some people are more difficult to persuade to get vaccinated, animal owners can’t wait to protect their best friends.