I’ve taken a look back at some posts from the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, to see how my thoughts have evolved, what I got right and what I screwed up. We have a lot of COVID-19 posts (starting from when we called it “novel coronavirus” or “Wuhan coronavirus” before the SARS-CoV-2 terminology existed).
The Easter Bunny and COVID-19 Risks
As spring approaches, a pressing question has come to the minds of many kids: “Can the Easter bunny get COVID-19?” or “Can Easter bunny eggs spread COVID-19?”
Fortunately, the answer is no. Easter bunnies are safe from this virus and kids don’t have to worry about whatever the Easter bunny leaves
Mink Vaccination Against SARS-CoV-2: Good or Bad?
That may seem like a strange question, but bear with me and read on.
Mink are back in the news, mainly with respect to vaccination against SARS-CoV-2. Mink are very susceptible to this virus, and it’s been shown that they can transmit it back to people. Perhaps more of a concern is that several mutant
Susceptibility of Wildlife to SARS-CoV-2
At the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, many major agencies took a head-in-the-sand approach to concerns about the potential for SARS-CoV-2 to infect different animal species. Fortunately, over the last year a considerable amount of work has been done to help figure out the range of species that are susceptible to this virus, and shed
COVID-19 in Gorillas, Toxoplasma in People
I usually link blog posts to Tweets, rather than re-hash my Twitter musings (weese_scott) on the blog, but two things I posted on Twitter today may be of interest here.
COVID-19 in captive gorillas
Not surprisingly, COVID-19 has been identified in captive gorillas, in this case at the San Diego zoo. It’s suspected that
SARS-CoV-2 in “Wild” Mink
There are various reasons we’re paying attention to SARS-CoV-2 in domestic animals. One important one is the potential for transmission of the virus from domestic animals to wildlife (because animals tend to have more direct contact with wildlife than people do). More specifically, we’re concerned about transmission to wildlife and then persistence of the virus
COVID-19 on a Mink Farm, Canada
Not surprisingly, COVID-19 has been identified on a mink farm in British Columbia, Canada, in the midst of Canada’s 2nd wave of the COVID-19 pandemic.
It’s important note that so far, the virus has only been found in people on the farm, not in the mink. Eight farm workers were reportedly diagnosed with COVID-19 over
COVID-19 in Animals Review Part 10: Non-Human Primates
I figured I might as well hit double digits before circling back to update the earlier reviews of COVID-19 in animals. This group doesn’t get talked about much, but there are some important issues to consider with regard to non-human primates.
Not surprisingly, many non-human primates are known to be, or are likely, susceptible to
Human Use of “Fish Antibiotics”
In the antimicrobial stewardship area, there are a number of things that would be so easy to address (the “low hanging fruit”) but have received surprisingly little attention. A prime example is human use of antibiotic products intended for use in animals that are purchased over-the-counter (OTC) or over-the internet, without a prescription. Yes, this
COVID-19 in Animals Review Part 9: Bats
By the ninth installment in this series we’ve moved away from our familiar domestic animals, but there are still a few species worth highlighting.
Bats aren’t actually one species though, they’re a diverse group of over 1400 unique species. Some eat insects, some eat fruit, some eat small critters like frogs, and some eat blood