FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. -- As omicron sweeps through households in Florida, more pet owners are reporting their dogs or cats show signs of coronavirus.
While COVID-19 in pets is a rare occurrence, veterinarians now know it can happen. Pets worldwide, including cats and dogs, have been infected with the virus that causes COVID-19, mostly after close contact with people with COVID-19.
One manufacturer of a COVID PCR test for pets, IDEXX Laboratories, has tested over 5,000 specimens collected from dogs, cats and horses who had respiratory illnesses. The tests confirmed more than three dozen cases of COVID in a dog or cat during the pandemic. The animals most often were in a household where humans had the virus.
