A tiger at Bronx Zoo in New York has tested positive for the coronavirus, CBS New York reported on Sunday. This is the first case of an an...
A tiger at Bronx Zoo in New York has tested positive for the coronavirus, CBS New York reported on Sunday. This is the first case of an animal being found infected with the virus in the United States.
The four-year-old Malayan tiger, named Nadia, tested positive for the virus on Sunday. Nadia, her sister Azul, two Amur tigers, and three African lions had developed a dry cough. Subsequently, they were tested for Covid-19, and Nadia was found positive. The zoo has been closed for visitors since March 16 due to the coronavirus epidemic in the United States.
“We tested the cat out of an abundance of caution and will ensure any knowledge we gain about Covid-19 will contribute to the world’s continuing understanding of this novel coronavirus,” Bronx Zoo Executive Director of Communications Max Pulsinelli said.
Dr Paul Calle, the chief veterinarian at the zoo, said that the testing was performed in a veterinary school laboratory, and was not similar to the one performed on humans. “You cannot send human samples to the veterinary laboratory, and you cannot send animal tests to the human laboratories, so there is no competition for testing between these very different situations,” Dr Calle said.
Pulsinelli said...
