It’s pretty much full time COVID-19 around here, and I’ve gotten behind on posting. I figured it might be useful to recap some of the more common questions that are going around:
Does the SARS-CoV-2 virus (virus that causes COVID-19) infect animals?
Yes. But…
…The virus likely originated in and animal of some kind, and
One major trickle-down effect of widespread disease outbreaks can be a shortage of certain supplies. As COVID-19 has emerged and spread in humans, availability of items such as nose-and-mouth (e.g. surgical) masks rapidly decreased because of hoarding, diversion to the black market, increased unnecessary use and increased legitimate use. In such a situation, veterinary clinics
The Public Health Agency of Canada has released a list of frequently asked questions on COVID-19, which includes a section on animals. Click here to read the COVID-19 FAQ.
Viruses need to attach to cells to infect them, and they do this by binding to specific receptors on the cell. If a virus can’t attach, it can’t infect. Some receptors are very specific to an individual animal species, while some are more general. These differences in receptor binding explain why some viruses only infect
I’ve gotten behind on writing so I’ll start back with a quick post. The World Small Animal Veterinary Association (WSAVA) has released an advisory document about the new coronavirus (the cause of the newly named disease COVID-19).
On the animal front, it’s still an ongoing battle to balance awareness (considering potential zoonotic sources and
I haven’t written much here about the 2019 novel coronavirus from China lately. In part, that’s because I’ve spent a lot of my time writing or reviewing documents for various groups on the topic. A common challenge I face with zoonotic diseases is the message. On one hand (or for some groups), I’m trying to
It was a bit of a slog but we’ve posted the updated 2020 edition Infection Prevention and Control Best Practices for Small Animal Veterinary Clinics. In addition to updated information, the new version has many new and expanded subjects, and provides a comprehensive guide to infection control for veterinary hospitals.
The recent reports of human-to-human transmission of the novel coronavirus that’s been identified in China certainly raise the stakes. While this virus still seems to be less transmissible and less virulent than its relative, the SARS coronavirus, it’s pretty early to have a lot of confidence in that. Lessons seem to have been learned
Various times, I’ve asked audiences “What percentage of antimicrobial resistance in humans do you think it attributable to antimicrobial use in animals?”
The actual number is probably on the low end of that range, but we really don’t know. It’s such a complex system that a simple
As an Associate Editor for CDC’s Emerging Infectious Diseases journal, I get an early look at some interesting articles (and have to read things that I wouldn’t necessarily get around to otherwise). The December edition just came out, and it had a variety of interesting articles. I’ll try to get to a few over the
