CHAPEL HILL, North Carolina — The pet dog of a Chapel Hill family taking part in a study at Duke University is apparently the first in the U.S. to test positive for the virus that causes COVID-19.
Dr. Chris Woods, the lead investigator of the Molecular and Epidemiological Study of Suspected Infection (MESSI), confirmed in a statement to CBS News, "To our knowledge, this is the first instance in which the virus has been detected in a dog. Little additional information is known at this time as we work to learn more about the exposure."
Early last month,Hong Kong health authorities saida coronavirus patient's petdog that tested positivefor the virus was "likely" the first case of human-to-animal transmission. Since then there have beenseveral cases reported in cats, but research shows dogs are not very susceptible to the virus.
WRAL-TV in Raleigh, North Carolina, which was first to report the U.S. development, said the dog, a pug named Winston, is part of a family in Chapel Hill.