A Malayan tiger at Bronx Zoo in New York has become the first of her kind to test positive for coronavirus.
The four-year-old, Nadia, tested positive after developing a dry cough and the Wildlife Conversation Authority said it is expected to recover soon.
The Bronx Zoo authorities said that the National Veterinary Services in Iowa confirmed the results of the tests. Initial reports claimed that it is expected that the tiger, along with six big cats, was infected a zookeeper.
A month ago, the cats and the lions started to show symptoms after exposure to the zoo employee, who has not been identified yet. The Chief Veteran of the Bronx Zoo, Paul Calle, said: “This is the first time that any of us know of anywhere in the world that a person infected the animal and the animal got sick”.
Though there have been some isolated cases of pets getting infected with the coronavirus, health experts assert that there is no proof that animals become sick or transfer it to others. However, Paul Calle also offered to share his research with other institutions and zoos, studying the transmission of the virus.
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Two Malayan tiger as well as two Amur tigers and three African lions, which showed symptoms are expected to recover soon. The big cats have a decrease in appetite but are doing well and interacting actively with their keepers, the Zoo said in a statement.
It also added that no other cats, including leopards, have shown any symptoms as different species react differently to the virus. Though it not yet clear that other animals will be tested, for now, the sick ones are being kept in the Tiger Mountain area.
Coronavirus and Animals
The virus was first detected in humans in the city of Wuhan last year in December. It is thought to have originated from wildlife and passed on to humans in the wildlife market of Wuhan.
It spreads because of human-to-human interaction, but the recent case of Nadia(tiger) testing positive have raised a series of new question for the researchers and health experts.
However, there have been very few isolated cases of animals and pets testing positive, including two dogs tested positive in Hong Kong. But the Bronx Zoo said that there had been no evidence in the US where the pets or animals have infected a human.
The World Health Organization (WHO) has also maintained the version of the Zoo authorities and said that studies are going to understand this issue more.
