Professor of Veterinary Public Health, University of Ibadan (UI), Victoria Olusola Adetunji, had advocated for the urgent involvement of Veterinary doctors in the fight against Coronavirus to eradicate the virus.
Adetunji, Chair of the University of Ibadan Covid-19 Emergency Response Team and a member of the Oyo State Covid-19 Decontamination and Containment Team, in a piece obtained from the Premier University website said that although there is no conclusive evidence of animal to human transmission of the infection, there is ample evidence of the presence of the virus in the animals.
She claimed that by end of February 2020, several animals had tested positive to Covid-19 in different countries adding that our cats, two dogs, five tigers and three lions were tested positive in Belgium, Hong Kong and United State of America (USA).
She stated that although the virus appeared to have originated from bats, the intermediate animals remain unknown, adding that there was no evidence yet that the animals that tested positive to Covid-19 infected other animals or humans.
There is no report of Covid-19 presence in animals in Nigeria yet. Nonetheless, the Veterinary Council of Nigeria is currently carrying out nationwide decontamination of livestock/ live birds markets, abattoirs and other vulnerable veterinary outfits across the nation. The purpose of this is to support the efforts of the government in eradicating the Covid-19 pandemic.
“According to the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC), until more is known about this virus, people with Covid- 19 should avoid unguarded contact with pets and other animals. Pet and live-stock owners should stay healthy and follow all NCDC guidelines around their animals”, she said.
She advised people dealing with pets and other animals to also monitor the health of the animals to see whether or not they have Covid- 19, by watching out for the same symptoms as in humans.
Responding to the question of what signs to look out for in animals, Adetunji stated that animals that have Covid-19 infection are likely to present similar symptoms to those presented by humans saying, “the first cat case from Belgium showed clinical signs suggestive of Covid- 19, such as vomiting, diarrhoea and respiratory distress one week after the owner tested positive for the virus.
The first tiger case also developed dry cough and loss of appetite before testing positive for the virus.
Though, there is no conclusive evidence in support of animal-to-human transmission, it is better to stay on the safe side. Therefore, people handling animals, such as cattle rearers and butchers, among others, should go the extra mile in taking precautionary measures.
Adetunji appealed to the government to enlist the services of veterinary doctors and vet researchers in educating the public on the nature and prevention of the infection saying, “This is because vet doctors have access to large numbers of livestock and people especially in rural areas. In addition, vet doctors have earned the trust and audience of the vast majority of Nigerians who practice pastoral farming. Importantly, they have been working actively to decontaminate kraals and other places”.
She concluded that if we eradicate Covid-19 from humans but the virus still resides in our animals, we cannot say for sure that we have experienced total victory.
