COVID-19 and Animals: Zoonotic Risk and Implications for Food Safety

Since the emergence of the novel coronavirus (SARS-CoV-2), which caused the COVID-19 pandemic, several animal species have already tested positive, including cats, dogs, and big cats in zoos. The zoonotic risk is certainly quite low at this time. However, scientists are seeking, in particular, to assess the role that domestic animals play as reservoirs of infection, as they may contribute to the persistence of the virus and the spread of the disease among humans.   The authors of a review of all the data collected on the transmissibility of the novel coronavirus infection between humans and domestic animals are urging researchers to quickly answer several key questions:

• Which animal species can be infected with SARS-CoV-2? What are the likely sources of infection, the infectious period, and the transmissibility between these animals, other animal species, and humans?
• What are the best diagnostic tests currently available for pets and farm animals?
• What clinical manifestations in pets and Livestock—as well as in other animal species—can serve as disease markers for veterinarians to help standardize a standard health reporting form?

Among the scenarios studied, one concerns the consequences of an outbreak among and through Livestock (cattle, sheep, goats, poultry), both in terms of food safety and economic impacts. The authors also recommend rapidly implementing a strategy to detect cases of infection and collect data from animal health professionals—such as veterinarians, zoo animal caretakers, and livestock farmers—to correlate these findings with those reported in humans. They thus propose an epidemiological approach that would compare the spread of human infection by cluster with the density of infected animal species, based on veterinary reports, revealing a potential link between sick animals and patients with COVID-19.