The world was stunned when the novel coronavirus that causes the disease COVID-19 became a pandemic. People were unsure about what to do but our dogs just do not seem to have any problems with it. However, we as owners have become worried about our pets’ health too as we think that they could contract the disease as well.
Winston is a dog and he is the very first in the US to have been believed to have gotten the virus. This pug was living with another dog with his fur parents. When their owners started to show the symptoms of COVID-19 and got positive test results, the two dogs also had to get tested.
Winston was also showing one of the signs of COVID-19 which was respiratory troubles. The other dog that Winston was living with had no symptoms whatsoever.
This all happened in March last year. Winston’s owners, Sam and Heather McLean, with their son, contracted the disease. The National Veterinary Services soon learned about the family’s dogs and Winston’s symptoms so they immediately also tested Winston for COVID-19. The results were not that confirmatory though and so the infection could not be confirmed.
That was back in March and things were not really that sure though as it was still quite new. However, it was a good thing that there have been developments and updates with regards to the disease and testing. That is why the representative of the agency, Lyndsay Cole, said that the weak results may have been because the home had people who were positive for the disease. A professor on vet microbiology has also looked at the situation and had said that there could have been some problems with how the lab that tested the dog handled the specimen.
In the end, Winston was tested and the results came out negative.
Source: Inside Edition