Support from readers like you keeps The Journal open.
You are visiting us because we have something you value. Independent, unbiased news that tells the truth. Advertising revenue goes some way to support our mission, but this year it has not been enough.
If you've seen value in our reporting, please contribute what you can, so we can continue to produce accurate and meaningful journalism. For everyone who needs it.
A PET CAT has fallen ill with coronavirus in the UK after apparently catching Covid-19 from its owners.
The infection was confirmed following tests at the Animal and Plant Health Agency (Apha) laboratory in Weybridge, Surrey, on 22 July.
Yvonne Doyle, medical director at Public Health England (PHE), said: “This is the first case of a domestic cat testing positive for Covid-19 in the UK but should not be a cause for alarm.
“The investigation into this case suggests that the infection was spread from humans to animal, and not the other way round.
At this time, there is no evidence that pets can transmit the disease to humans.
“In line with the general advice on fighting coronavirus, you should wash your hands regularly, including before and after contact with animals.”
A private vet initially diagnosed the pet with feline herpes virus, a common cat respiratory infection, but the sample was also tested for Covid-19 part of a research programme.
Advertisement
The case has been reported to the World Organisation for Animal Health in line with international agreements.
‘A very rare event’
There have been a small number of confirmed cases in pets in other countries in Europe, North America and Asia.
The UK’s chief veterinary officer, Christine Middlemiss, said: “Tests conducted by the Animal and Plant Health Agency have confirmed that the virus responsible for Covid-19 has been detected in a pet cat in England.
“This is a very rare event, with infected animals detected to date only showing mild clinical signs and recovering within a few days. There is no evidence to suggest that pets directly transmit the virus to humans.
“We will continue to monitor this situation closely and will update our guidance to pet owners should the situation change.”
‘Full recovery’
A team of scientists at the University of Glasgow Centre for Virus Research are behind the programme to screen hundreds of samples for Covid-19 infections in the UK cat population.
Related Reads
Return of schools will see more teachers, extensive cleaning and PPE, Varadkar says
Number of coronavirus cases worldwide hits 16 million
Researchers at the CVR have now completed a full genome sequencing of the virus found in the infected cat.
Professor Margaret Hosie, who works on the project, said: “There have been sporadic reports of cats from Covid-19 households in Hong Kong, Belgium, France, Germany, Switzerland, Spain and the US that tested positive for (coronavirus) and were presumed to be infected from their owners, but this is the first report of an infected cat in the UK.
“All available evidence suggests that the cat was infected from its owners, who had previously tested positive.
“The cat and its owners have since made a full recovery and there was no transmission of the virus to other animals or people in the household.”
Professor William Weir of the University of Glasgow’s School of Veterinary Medicine, said: “The factors that govern why one species is susceptible to the Covid-19 virus while others are more resistant are currently unknown, but will likely reveal more about how this virus spreads and causes disease.
“At present, there is no evidence that cats, dogs or other domestic animals play any role in the epidemiology of human infections with (Covid-19).”
He said cats and dogs with reported infections usually recover and there has been no evidence of transmission occurring between cats or dogs.
Readers like you are keeping these stories free for everyone...
A mix of advertising and supporting contributions helps keep paywalls away from valuable information like this article.
Over 5,000 readers like you have already stepped up and support us with a monthly payment or a once-off donation.
TheJournal.ie's Coronavirus Newsletter
TheJournal.ie's coronavirus newsletter cuts through the misinformation and noise with the clear facts you need to make informed choices. Sign up here
To embed this post, copy the code below on your site
Close
16 Comments
This is YOUR comments community. Stay civil, stay constructive, stay on topic.
Please familiarise yourself with our comments policy
here
before taking part.
Feckin ejits ! The radiation alone will kill a human in months. Dozens of automated missions have to carried out first.
Spend the 6 billion on trying to make earth a better place to live.
We’re wrecking this planet, what gives us the right to start wrecking another .
This is the issue I have with this project. Ok people have to get paid for providing a service or their time, but I’m sure someone in this grand scheme is looking at the profit margin.
So sending 4 people to mars is ambitious and I’d like it to happen but not at the expense of life over money, this is totally pre meditated. If these organisers are really motivated to make history they will do it for nothing. If mankind is really motivated to go to another planet then why don’t we band resources together? Why do it this way, one way trip, TV show… It’s big brother and the public get to VOTE who goes, I can’t believe it is a movie plot!!
That’s valled socialism. As far as I can see did not work too well for the USSR in the space race. You do need to invest and you fo make it back ten fold in technological advancements. This Mars mission is alot of crap it will not happen.
We will see a mission but funded by a state. The likes of nasa will. But it will not be one way. Uproar sending astronaut to death so it must be return trip. Alot of work involved and nasa won’t have the funding unless China threaten America’s space dominance
If you look around there’s been lots of money thrown at existing problems, some were solved other not really. It is not always solved by money. $6B will not make a dent on existing budgets to ‘solve existing problems’ and might do some good to create a future for mankind in space.
In theory it sounds great to get away from earth and the dreggs of humanity, to go and live with other good people on another planet, and not be held back by the things that hold back humanity here. I honestly wouldn’t be making a big deal over whatever nationallity these guys are. They are soon to be Martians. I would assume these guys are leaving any sort of twisted nationalism behind them and starting over from scratch. Sounds great, but I rather not live in a box for the rest of my life. At least they will be remembered for millenia to come, which is more than what I can say for the rest of us
Much as it’s nice to say he was chosen from almost a quarter of a million applicants, fewer than 3000 bothered to pay the application fee when it came down to it…
The rovers they describe laying the groundwork there sound implausible to me. It needs to be able to clear areas of ground, pile earth (or, eh, soil) on top of habitats, cart heavy equipment around, and also assemble equipment (such as connecting hoses and deploying solar panels). So a solar powered robot JCB essentially. It’s a far cry from any of the rovers that have made it to Mars so far! And since all they appear to have is concept art, they would appear to need to design and test this thing in full before the planned launch in 2020.
It’s an interesting idea anyway. Maybe if they did succeed in getting enough people and equipment there they’d be able to develop the industry necessary to return, so the trips would no longer be so one way.
Completely agree with you on the infrastructure needed to build a viable colony. It would be much heavier then solar-powered rovers. I frankly believe Mars One will never get the funding to go further than training the crews, but that would be a plus already. We’ll probably need Musk’s Mars Colonial Transports to carry tens of colonists at a time plus their heavy machinery to succeed.
Irish peacekeepers in Lebanon fired at by Israeli troops while on patrol
Niall O'Connor
2 hrs ago
19.7k
Liverpool parade
Alleged Liverpool driver charged with multiple offences including grievous bodily harm
2 hrs ago
5.6k
United Arab Emirates
Kinahan gang figure Sean McGovern lands in Dublin ahead of court appearance
1 hr ago
48.7k
Your Cookies. Your Choice.
Cookies help provide our news service while also enabling the advertising needed to fund this work.
We categorise cookies as Necessary, Performance (used to analyse the site performance) and Targeting (used to target advertising which helps us keep this service free).
We and our 197 partners store and access personal data, like browsing data or unique identifiers, on your device. Selecting Accept All enables tracking technologies to support the purposes shown under we and our partners process data to provide. If trackers are disabled, some content and ads you see may not be as relevant to you. You can resurface this menu to change your choices or withdraw consent at any time by clicking the Cookie Preferences link on the bottom of the webpage .Your choices will have effect within our Website. For more details, refer to our Privacy Policy.
We and our vendors process data for the following purposes:
Use precise geolocation data. Actively scan device characteristics for identification. Store and/or access information on a device. Personalised advertising and content, advertising and content measurement, audience research and services development.
Cookies Preference Centre
We process your data to deliver content or advertisements and measure the delivery of such content or advertisements to extract insights about our website. We share this information with our partners on the basis of consent. You may exercise your right to consent, based on a specific purpose below or at a partner level in the link under each purpose. Some vendors may process your data based on their legitimate interests, which does not require your consent. You cannot object to tracking technologies placed to ensure security, prevent fraud, fix errors, or deliver and present advertising and content, and precise geolocation data and active scanning of device characteristics for identification may be used to support this purpose. This exception does not apply to targeted advertising. These choices will be signaled to our vendors participating in the Transparency and Consent Framework.
Manage Consent Preferences
Necessary Cookies
Always Active
These cookies are necessary for the website to function and cannot be switched off in our systems. They are usually only set in response to actions made by you which amount to a request for services, such as setting your privacy preferences, logging in or filling in forms. You can set your browser to block or alert you about these cookies, but some parts of the site will not then work.
Targeting Cookies
These cookies may be set through our site by our advertising partners. They may be used by those companies to build a profile of your interests and show you relevant adverts on other sites. They do not store directly personal information, but are based on uniquely identifying your browser and internet device. If you do not allow these cookies, you will experience less targeted advertising.
Functional Cookies
These cookies enable the website to provide enhanced functionality and personalisation. They may be set by us or by third party providers whose services we have added to our pages. If you do not allow these cookies then these services may not function properly.
Performance Cookies
These cookies allow us to count visits and traffic sources so we can measure and improve the performance of our site. They help us to know which pages are the most and least popular and see how visitors move around the site. All information these cookies collect is aggregated and therefore anonymous. If you do not allow these cookies we will not be able to monitor our performance.
Store and/or access information on a device 137 partners can use this purpose
Cookies, device or similar online identifiers (e.g. login-based identifiers, randomly assigned identifiers, network based identifiers) together with other information (e.g. browser type and information, language, screen size, supported technologies etc.) can be stored or read on your device to recognise it each time it connects to an app or to a website, for one or several of the purposes presented here.
Personalised advertising and content, advertising and content measurement, audience research and services development 177 partners can use this purpose
Use limited data to select advertising 139 partners can use this purpose
Advertising presented to you on this service can be based on limited data, such as the website or app you are using, your non-precise location, your device type or which content you are (or have been) interacting with (for example, to limit the number of times an ad is presented to you).
Create profiles for personalised advertising 101 partners can use this purpose
Information about your activity on this service (such as forms you submit, content you look at) can be stored and combined with other information about you (for example, information from your previous activity on this service and other websites or apps) or similar users. This is then used to build or improve a profile about you (that might include possible interests and personal aspects). Your profile can be used (also later) to present advertising that appears more relevant based on your possible interests by this and other entities.
Use profiles to select personalised advertising 102 partners can use this purpose
Advertising presented to you on this service can be based on your advertising profiles, which can reflect your activity on this service or other websites or apps (like the forms you submit, content you look at), possible interests and personal aspects.
Create profiles to personalise content 47 partners can use this purpose
Information about your activity on this service (for instance, forms you submit, non-advertising content you look at) can be stored and combined with other information about you (such as your previous activity on this service or other websites or apps) or similar users. This is then used to build or improve a profile about you (which might for example include possible interests and personal aspects). Your profile can be used (also later) to present content that appears more relevant based on your possible interests, such as by adapting the order in which content is shown to you, so that it is even easier for you to find content that matches your interests.
Use profiles to select personalised content 43 partners can use this purpose
Content presented to you on this service can be based on your content personalisation profiles, which can reflect your activity on this or other services (for instance, the forms you submit, content you look at), possible interests and personal aspects. This can for example be used to adapt the order in which content is shown to you, so that it is even easier for you to find (non-advertising) content that matches your interests.
Measure advertising performance 161 partners can use this purpose
Information regarding which advertising is presented to you and how you interact with it can be used to determine how well an advert has worked for you or other users and whether the goals of the advertising were reached. For instance, whether you saw an ad, whether you clicked on it, whether it led you to buy a product or visit a website, etc. This is very helpful to understand the relevance of advertising campaigns.
Measure content performance 73 partners can use this purpose
Information regarding which content is presented to you and how you interact with it can be used to determine whether the (non-advertising) content e.g. reached its intended audience and matched your interests. For instance, whether you read an article, watch a video, listen to a podcast or look at a product description, how long you spent on this service and the web pages you visit etc. This is very helpful to understand the relevance of (non-advertising) content that is shown to you.
Understand audiences through statistics or combinations of data from different sources 96 partners can use this purpose
Reports can be generated based on the combination of data sets (like user profiles, statistics, market research, analytics data) regarding your interactions and those of other users with advertising or (non-advertising) content to identify common characteristics (for instance, to determine which target audiences are more receptive to an ad campaign or to certain contents).
Develop and improve services 102 partners can use this purpose
Information about your activity on this service, such as your interaction with ads or content, can be very helpful to improve products and services and to build new products and services based on user interactions, the type of audience, etc. This specific purpose does not include the development or improvement of user profiles and identifiers.
Use limited data to select content 45 partners can use this purpose
Content presented to you on this service can be based on limited data, such as the website or app you are using, your non-precise location, your device type, or which content you are (or have been) interacting with (for example, to limit the number of times a video or an article is presented to you).
Use precise geolocation data 60 partners can use this special feature
With your acceptance, your precise location (within a radius of less than 500 metres) may be used in support of the purposes explained in this notice.
Actively scan device characteristics for identification 29 partners can use this special feature
With your acceptance, certain characteristics specific to your device might be requested and used to distinguish it from other devices (such as the installed fonts or plugins, the resolution of your screen) in support of the purposes explained in this notice.
Ensure security, prevent and detect fraud, and fix errors 112 partners can use this special purpose
Always Active
Your data can be used to monitor for and prevent unusual and possibly fraudulent activity (for example, regarding advertising, ad clicks by bots), and ensure systems and processes work properly and securely. It can also be used to correct any problems you, the publisher or the advertiser may encounter in the delivery of content and ads and in your interaction with them.
Deliver and present advertising and content 115 partners can use this special purpose
Always Active
Certain information (like an IP address or device capabilities) is used to ensure the technical compatibility of the content or advertising, and to facilitate the transmission of the content or ad to your device.
Match and combine data from other data sources 84 partners can use this feature
Always Active
Information about your activity on this service may be matched and combined with other information relating to you and originating from various sources (for instance your activity on a separate online service, your use of a loyalty card in-store, or your answers to a survey), in support of the purposes explained in this notice.
Link different devices 63 partners can use this feature
Always Active
In support of the purposes explained in this notice, your device might be considered as likely linked to other devices that belong to you or your household (for instance because you are logged in to the same service on both your phone and your computer, or because you may use the same Internet connection on both devices).
Identify devices based on information transmitted automatically 107 partners can use this feature
Always Active
Your device might be distinguished from other devices based on information it automatically sends when accessing the Internet (for instance, the IP address of your Internet connection or the type of browser you are using) in support of the purposes exposed in this notice.
Save and communicate privacy choices 90 partners can use this special purpose
Always Active
The choices you make regarding the purposes and entities listed in this notice are saved and made available to those entities in the form of digital signals (such as a string of characters). This is necessary in order to enable both this service and those entities to respect such choices.
have your say