GET INFORMED.

Dog covid or coronavirus is not the same SARS virus as the human one!

Nor is cats'...

The differences

DOGS

1. Due to the different structure of the virus, humans cannot catch 'dog covid' from studies undertaken so far, and no 'in between' virus that might aid it being caught by humans has been found.

2. In humans the main issue still seems to be severe breathing problems, but for dogs it goes right to the stomach usually.

3. For humans Covid transfers in the air, or by touching infected items then rubbing our faces, but for dogs it usually comes from getting too close to infected body waste of other dogs, such as in a crowded kennel, or stepping in it on a walk when they have an open wound/ eating it. Brucellosis is transferred the same way, but it is a bacteria not a virus.

4. The incubation period from ingestion (eating it or absorbing it through a cut) to clinical signs is 1-4 days in dogs but in humans is 2-14 days. with an average of 5 days according to the ONS.

5. The duration of illness is 2-10 days in most dogs. In humans it's (mild) 1-2 weeks, 6 weeks and more in more serious cases and there's also 'long Covid' where so far people have never quite recovered. Currently studies on any permanent affect on dogs and cats for that matter are lacking. But we are seeing cases in both dogs and cats of chronic heart inflammation problems after contracting, and recovering from, dog or cat covid.

6. Secondary infections by bacteria, parasites, and other viruses may develop and prolong illness and recovery which is why the vet may prescribe antibiotics. This is the case with all viral treatments in humans and dogs however.

7. Dogs may be carriers of the disease for up to six months (180 days) after infection. Studies aren't seeing the end of how long 'long Covid' at any rate remains in the system of humans, at least not signs that dogs can't sniff out, but even with 'ordinary Covid' we can see an average of an 83 day carrier period in humans becoming prevalent. If you test positive again 90 days after first getting Covid, it's considered a new variant.

The differences

CATS

1. Due to the different structure of the virus, humans cannot catch 'cat covid' from studies undertaken so far, and no 'in between' virus that might aid it being caught by humans has been found.

2. In humans and cats the main issue still seems to be severe breathing problems, but for cats it is often without symptoms, or only mild ones, while being very contagious. When it is severe we can see peritonitis developing in 5-10% of cases- of which breathing issues is also just one of many symptoms- major organ shut down, fluid collection in places where it shouldn't collect all over the body, and worse.

3. For humans Covid transfers in the air, but for cats, just like dogs, it usually comes from getting too close to infected body waste of other cats, such as in a crowded rescue, or stepping in it while outside when they have an open wound/cleaning themselves.

4. Because so many cats don't display symptoms, it is much harder to work out the incubation period from ingestion (cleaning themselves or absorbing it through a cut) to clinical signs is 4-6 weeks in cats according to some veterinary professionals.

5. The duration of illness is also hard to specify in cats due to how often they just don't seem to be ill at all.

6. Secondary infections issues still apply, for which antibiotics can be given.

7. Cats may be carriers of the disease for life, but this is not common.

However both dogs and cats can catch human Covid 19 from you!

So firstly, try not to panic.

Wash your hands,

keep litter boxes and usual dog soiling areas extra clean

and keep contact with your pets to a minimum if you test positive for Covid for at least 14 days!

So to repeat

Dog covid or coronavirus is not the same SARS virus as the human one, and nor is cats'...

although the symptoms seem very similar especially with the Omicron variant that also has the stomach problems symptom. And dogs can even smell the presence of human covid and help early detection without lots of invasive testing!

So don't dump your dog if you're told they have Covid... because you cannot catch it off them- dogs or cats!

Secondly, act fast.

One thing about Dog covid or Canine Enteric Coronavirus (CCoV) or Cat covid (Feline Coronavirus or FCoV) is that if/when it hits, it it hits them hard and fast and any symptoms will worsen FAST even in an hour.

The first identification of human coronaviruses (HCoV) occurred in the 1960s, and animals, from 1937 where it seems to have first presented in birds. So while it's a nasty virus, and mutates (changes) fast, it is not an automatic death sentence. But the faster you act, the better your pet's chances are.

Of course as the job of any virus is to stay alive and mutate as much as possible to do so, it's not a simple thing to try and understand. Already we know there are loads of Covid or coronavirus variants as it's been around for so long, and trying to make sense of it all can explode your brain!

Not for the faint hearted! But it just shows what tricky beasties viruses are! This diagram is likely to be out of date by 2023...

But as so far the symptoms haven't changed, it's best to give your dogs and cats regular 'health checks' by eye and hand to keep on top of early detection of any nasties.

Thirdly, and this is important, keep your cats safe.

There have been cases of mutations of CCoV (dog covid) and FCoV (cat covid) crossing species. And cat covid is much more common than dog covid, but presents very mildly usually, to the point of there sometimes being no symptoms at all.

This is not always the case, however. Cat covid can bring on feline infectious peritonitis (FIP) fast for example, which is almost always fatal.

So should your cat or dog present symptoms like this it's vital to get them

both/all cats and dogs checked out.

Initial testing is often with stool samples. But here we see a cat being tested for suspected human Covid 19, in the US, with the nasal swab.

So what should I look out for?

Initial Symptoms in dogs and cats

gastric (stomach) issues- diarrhoea and bloating. The poo is sloppy, with a 'rotten' smell and orange colour in dogs but often not so obvious in cats. It may contain blood or mucus. Their tummies may be hot or even hard in places to the touch.
lethargy (doesn't want to get up, or play)
sudden decreased appetite (may also affect them wanting to drink. If they stop drinking completely call the vet immediately!)
dehydration (lack of body fluids due to stomach issues)
sometimes there are breathing issues in dogs too but it's less common in modern covid variants, rather being a sign of canine respiratory coronavirus (CRCoV) another now more rare form of the virus. Cats as we have said are more likely to develop breathing problems. The 'R' in SARS, of which dog and cat covid are variations of, does mean 'respiratory' (breathing) after all!
sometimes cats or dogs could vomit, especially if the vomiting is linked to breathing issues.

The problem here is that a lot of other viral nasties also start with diarrhoea, parvovirus, where horribly the two viruses will 'play off' each other to see which can make the dog more sick, or distemper for example in dogs, and in cats Panleukopenia virus, feline leukemia virus (FLV), feline immunodeficiency virus (FIV), as well as coronaviruses! So it's best to get the dog tested for parvo and distemper, or the cat tested for FIV, FLV and the like, too should they start to get sick very fast with these symptoms.

All good rescues will have already done these tests on the dogs and cats on arrival at their centre.

If you suspect anything and have multiple animals, you will need to separate them,

feed separately,

and wash your hands, bedding, floors and all utensils very thoroughly to prevent contamination.

Do not wipe your dogs and cats with disinfectant- you could poison them!

Standard Treatment

There isn't one really so don't let your vet charge you through the nose! What vets will do is called 'supportive treatment', making them comfortable and providing fluids and pharmaceutical aids to give the dog or cat a boost- so their immune systems can fight it off itself.

Antibiotics don't work against viruses, but may be useful in controlling secondary bacterial infections that may attack a dog's already overloaded immune system.
Steroids. Vets are very fond of handing out these (anecdotal, 30 years of seeing multiple vets with multiple dogs). There has been a study showing using the steroid prednisolone helped dogs to fight off distemper successfully, for example. However, steroids leave dogs open to bacterial infections so the vet should never give a dog with suspected Covid a steroid shot then send them home, they should be kept in clinic in as sterile environment as possible.
Withholding food (NOT water) for twenty-four hours after diarrhoea starts and gradually reintroducing small amounts of food may be the only required treatment if they have a strong immune system. We are advised to do the same if we get gastro enteritis.
Fluids. Lots and lots of fluids.

A dehydrated pet may require intravenous fluids to correct the fluid and electrolyte imbalances. So they may need to stay in the vet's to be put on a drip. This is often expensive. But diarrhoea pulls all the fluids from a pet's system so replacing this is vital to help them fight the virus!

To check if they are dehydrated

you can do

1. The skin pinch test.

This tests how 'elastic' their skin is (also known as capillary refill time). Gently pinch the loose skin at your dog’s back of their neck then release. If their skin takes longer than two seconds to return to its original position, your dog could be dehydrated.

2. The gum press

Another way to check for dehydration is to examine their gums. They should be pink and moist. Sticky, dry, or off-colour gums can be a sign of dehydration. If you think your dog is dehydrated, press down on their gums. Like the skin pinch test, the colour should return immediately.

If you notice signs of dehydration in your dog, provide fresh water for your dog to slowly drink. Taking in fluids too quickly could make them vomit and lose more vital fluids.

3. sunken eyes

This is serious! Your pets body is made up of about 80% water and dehydration shrinks the major tissues, including that fat pad around the eye. It also affects the water content within the eyeball. This shrinkage (enophthalmos) makes the pet's eyes look like they've sunk into their heads. Harder to see in short nosed dog breeds, whose eyes sit more loosely in their sockets, this can also be Horner's Syndrome, and eye damage, and even masses of tissue that may or may not be cancerous in dogs and cats. Severe cases of this look extremely distressing so we have decided not to include a photo here, it can look like they have no eyes at all in very bad cases.

You must contact a vet immediately if you see this.

4. body language and behaviour

This can be harder to spot, especially in a new dog or cat, but dehydrated pets will often be

more tired than normal
start to display what look like to us grumpy or short tempered behaviours
urinate less,
or there's a dark colour and strong smell to their urine
have trouble walking
refuse to eat
not be interested in playing
or pant heavily .

Cats often show pain in their faces even less than dogs but this study provides us with this handy graphic

If your dog or cat stops eating and/or drinking altogether or if you suspect severe dehydration,

call your vet immediately for emergency care.

There your vet will assess your pet and possibly rehydrate them via intravenous fluids. They may even be in organ/renal failure.

Is there a Covid vaccine for dogs?

Canine coronavirus vaccines are available. This vaccine is not recommended for all dogs- and not recommended at all in general by WSAVA Guidelines.

They must be healthy and over 6 weeks old for example- and any vaccine will be administered based on your dog's lifestyle and risk assessment. This vaccine will only work for the CCoV type of coronavirus and not, as some tin foil hatters claimed last year, also cure human Covid 19 because they are not the same virus!

Adopters of a certain age may even remember their dogs getting this vaccine along with all the others, and seeing the letters 'CV' (coronavirus) in their dog health books. I know we do. But it has fallen off the core list of vaccines

for dogs due to low presentation of the disease (3% back in 2010 according to one Government study) mostly due to concerns over the vaccine itself as well as how effective it has been in preventing the virus in clinical trials.

The lack of conclusive data on how good the vaccine is could be because CCoV doesn't always cause sickness or even symptoms in dogs, just the same as humans. Vaccines tend to only work really well if the virus is pathogenic (i.e. definitely always going to cause sickness/disease) and we have seen similar differences in success of the vaccine for human Covid 19 as well.

Is there a Covid vaccine for cats?

The short answer is no, not yet.

This doesn't mean you ignore symptoms!

The main issue with SARS type virus is that they can combine with other viruses and conditions (either known or not) in your dog or cat to result in a horribly sick, and sometimes a dead, dog or cat in hours.

QUICK CHECKLIST

Keep calm!

Check

tummies,

neck skin

gums

and eyes.

Are they

acting out of character? Overtired or snappy?

Check

their wee for dark colours or smells

their poo- is it solid?

Give fluids not food

(and diatomaceous earth either ingested if possible or around them/in beds etc to kill all manner of parasites)

Are they

panting

tired

unable to walk, eat or drink? CALL THE VET NOW!

And ALWAYS

Contact your vet

if they go from 'normal' to full on sick inside an hour or day.

Further reading

Checking for and preventing dehydration in dogs https://pethelpful.com/dogs/Dogs-and-Dehydration-How-to-Make-Sure-Your-Dog-Gets-Enough-to-Drink

Checking for and preventing dehydration in cats https://pets.webmd.com/cats/guide/dehydration-cats

On feline (cat) and canine (dog) coronavirus https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0106534

On viral types and cross species links https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/jsap.13207

UK government guidelines on diseases and vaccinations in dogs https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/921383/MB_23.09.20_V2_-_281595-v7-VMD_Position_paper_on_Authorised_Vaccination_Scedules_for_Dogs.pdf

What is feline infectious peritonitis (FIP)? https://vcahospitals.com/know-your-pet/feline-infectious-peritonitis

WSAVA vaccination guidelines https://wsava.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/WSAVA-Vaccination-Guidelines-2015.pdf

Does my pet have Covid? What do I do to find out?