House pets can get infected with the coronavirus, public health officials say, but the illness is normally mild in animals and none have died.
Officials say there’s not a lot of information on pets and coronavirus as the world works to respond to the pandemic. But they say the risk is low that dogs and cats could pass the virus to humans.
“A small number of pets (cats and dogs) have been confirmed to be infected with the virus that causes COVID-19, mostly after close contact with a person with COVID-19,” according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.