Six large cats, three tigers, and three African lions have developed a dry cough, at the Bronx Zoo. One more, a 4-year-old Malayan tiger named Nadia, has tested positive for the new coronavirus, the zoo said Sunday.
The tigers and lions are believed to have been infected by a zoo employee who wasn’t yet showing symptoms. All are doing well and expected to recover, the zoo said.
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The zoo has been closed to the public since March 16, the date coronavirus outbreak in New York.
4 year old female Malayan Tiger at the Bronx Zoo tests positive for #covid19 … 3 other tigers and 3 African lions also have dry coughs. All cats expected to recover. @BronxZoo says asymptomatic employee infected the cats. #nbc4ny (????: WCS) pic.twitter.com/7KhIJpcCjv
— Steven Bognar (@Bogs4NY) April 5, 2020
“Appropriate preventive measures are now in place for all staff who are caring for them, and the other cats in our four WCS zoos, to prevent further exposure of any other of our zoo cats,” the zoo said.
AVMA’s ongoing recommendation that until more is known about this virus, you should restrict contact with pets and other animals while you are sick with COVID-19, just as you would restrict contact with other people.
