Science stories
These are the animals that can catch coronavirus
They have all been found to catch the virus that changed everything over a year ago.
Have you been curious about which animals are capable of getting the not-so-novel coronavirus? Me too, so I’ve made a list with all of them (+ cute pictures).
▹ Bats 🦇
There are lots of different species of bats. Not all of them respond to coronaviruses the same way.
Scientists have tested several other bat species, and the good news is that most of them are not ideal hosts of SARS-CoV-2 (the virus that causes COVID-19 in humans).
Fruit bats, however, can become infected. What’s more important, infected fruit bats can infect other fruit bats and pass on the virus.
No need to fear or hate them, though.
“Bats and other animals are not responsible for the epidemics or pandemics affecting humans. Blaming wildlife for zoonotic emergence may result in useless and highly damaging culling, mass slaughter and loss of biodiversity.”
Roger Frutosa, Jordi Serra-Coboc , Tianmu Chend , & Christian A. Devaux
▹ Golden Hamsters 🐹
Golden hamsters can catch and transmit SARS-CoV-2 to other hamsters early in the pandemic.
These animals actually get sick, showing decreased activity and respiratory difficulties.
Notably, just like in humans, males and older hamsters get sicker than females and younger hamsters.
▹ Deer mice 🐭
North American deer mice are closely related to golden hamsters. Like them, a recent study has found that deer mice exposed to SARS-CoV-2 can contract the virus and pass it onto others.
Unlike golden hamsters, however, the infected deer mice were asymptomatic or had mild symptoms.
▹ Bank voles 🐀
Similar to deer mice, bank voles have been found to be able to get sick when experimentally infected with SARS-CoV-2.
Unlike deer mice, they cannot pass on the disease. Also, bank voles who tested positive for SARS-CoV-2 never presented symptoms. These results mean that there is a low risk of bank voles being reservoirs in the wild.
▹ Cats 😿
Another early member of the “animals that can get SARS-CoV-2” group are cats. They can both catch it and pass it on to other cats. Younger cats, in particular, are at risk of catching the virus and being affected by it.
Likely, only severely sick or immunocompromised cats are in danger.
▹ Dogs 🐕
A few dogs with sick owners have tested positive, but they did not show any signs of the disease. The virus was also not found on dogs (or cats) pads or hairs.
The only real reason they are here is so that I am not lying in the title… Joking. Sort of. Dogs can catch SARS-CoV-2, but they have quite a low susceptibility to the virus.
▹ Ferrets 🐾
Ferrets are highly susceptible to catching covid and transmitting it to other ferrets.
In one study, ferrets living with humans who are sick with coronavirus did not contract the virus themselves. In another study, they found two ferrets with the virus (1.57% of the sample), but the health status of the owners was unknown.
▹ Rabbits 🐰
Early this year, a research article was published on rabbits & COVID-19.
It seems that while rabbits can get infected with the virus, they remain asymptomatic, and it is unlikely that they are to pass on the disease, unlike ferrets and golden hamsters. A study with two sick rabbit owners found no virus in the animals.
▹ Monkeys 🙊
Similar to golden hamsters, several monkey species have been found to get sick when infected with SARS-CoV-2 and are potential animal models to study covid.
Amongst them are the rhesus macaques, cynomolgus macaques, hamadryas baboons, and African green monkeys.
Most* american monkeys, on the other hand, seem to be safe from catching the virus.
Monkeys have been instrumental in the research of COVID-19 and its vaccines.
▹ Marmosets 🙈
*The exception to American monkeys being safe from the virus, marmosets can get sick with SARS-CoV-2, at least, older individuals.
However, when free-living marmosets were tested in wilderness areas close to two COVID-19 hotspots in Brazil, all animals tested negative for SARS-CoV-2.
▹ Tree Shrews 🐿
Tree shrews were studied for their potential to study COVID-19 but were not deemed good candidates. A research article in late 2020 showed that tree shrews could get SARS-CoV-2, although they do not get noticeably sick.
In a different study, older tree shrews were less affected by the virus than younger shrews, unlike humans.
▹ Deer 🦌
Deer were known to be affected by other types of coronavirus, so scientists had a look to see if white tailed deer can become infected and transmit SARS-CoV-2.
Their findings reveal that white tailed deer can contract and infect other deer with covid. However, their symptoms were mild or non-existent, and the risk to deer from COVID-19 is still considered low.
“At least two other deer species (reindeer and Père David’s deer) are considered likely to be impacted by the virus, so whitetails aren’t the only species of interest.”
Kip Adams, Chief Conservation Officer with the National Deer Association
▹ Minks 🦡
Minks were first detected to have covid in mink farms in The Netherlands, but soon the disease was found in farms worldwide. Minks do get sick from the virus and can have fever and coughing.
Importantly, minks with covid can infect humans. Healthy farmers working in the farms contracted COVID-19 from the minks.
More worryingly, a wild mink tested positive covid of SARS-CoV- 2 in the US. This is the first case of a wild animal catching the virus, as all previous cases have been detected from domestic animals, farm animals, or during testing.
It is likely, though, that the wild mink contracted the virus from mink farms’ refuse.
▹Beavers 🌲
After workers got sick with the delta variant of covid, the beaver farm where they worked tested the animals.
Seven beavers tested positive and developed signs such as cough, runny nose, and sticky eyes. The animals recovered.
▹ Raccoon Dogs 🦊
Raccoon dogs have been found to both get sick after getting infected with SARS-CoV- 2 and to be able to transmit the virus to other raccoon dogs.
Since countries like China use these animals for fur farms, they should be monitored closely. We do not want a similar situation to what has happened with mink farms.
▹ House flies 🦟
The first insect species on which SARS-CoV- 2 has been detected.
Flies are known to transmit a variety of diseases to humans and animals. This prompted some scientists to test the flies outside of hospitals treating COVID patients in Iran.
The flies harboured the virus for up to 24 h post-exposure, but they are not thought to be able to transmit it.
Zoo animals
▹ Lions, Tigers, Pumas, and Snow Leopards 🦁🐯😼🐆
Both lions and tigers tested positive for SARS-CoV-2. However, neither of those animals were in nature. Rather, they were zoo animals in a large metropolis (New York), which early on in the pandemic was an epicentre of COVID-19 infections. Later on, reports of tigers and lions with SARS-CoV-2 have surfaced in zoos across the country and the world.
Similarly, a couple of pumas in captivity have since tested positive for SARS-CoV-2. One in South Africa and one in Argentina. Lastly, three snow leopards in a single zoo tested positive for SARS-CoV-2.
▹ Gorillas 🦍
When this list was originally published, gorillas were the latest zoo animal to have caught SARS-CoV-2. Nowadays, there are several zoos that have reported sick gorillas.
In the wild, National parks and NGOs worked together to safeguard wild gorillas from COVID-19.
▹ Otters 🦦
Several Asian small-clawed otters contracted SARS-CoV-2 at an aquarium.
The (long) video to the side explores COVID-19 & animals. The time-stamp included here starts as Dr. Lance Adams goes through the timeline of COVID-19 & zoo animals.
▹ Binturongs, fishing cats, coatis, & spotted hyaenas 🐾
A string of animals tested positive for SARS-CoV-2 in American zoos in the last quarter of 2021.
No further details have been given about the binturong, the fishing cat, or the coati that tested positive, unfortunately.
The two spotted hyaenas had mild symptoms like a bit of nasal discharge and occasional coughs. Although the hyaenas were a bit lethargic, they were reported to have normal energy levels and were expected to make a full recovery.
▹ Hippopotamus 🦛
Two hippos at a Belgian zoo that tested positive also had their fair share of runny noses and some coughing.
The hippo enclosure has been closed and a string of additional measures have been put in place, such as rapid tests for the keepers and wearing safety googles (in addition to all other safety equipment).
▹ Canada lynx ❄️
The latest animal species to be added to the list of animals that can catch SARS-CoV-2 during 2021.
The lynx was coughing and lethargic, which prompted its keepers to test it. As with the hyaenas, the keepers expect a full recovery.
This list was updated throughout 2021 and was updated for a final time on the 7th of January, 2022. I will be updating instead this Wikipedia list.
