Just when you think that Covid-19 only hits a human, then think again. A four-year-old female Malayan tiger has just tested positive for Covid-19.
As per reported by BBC, the animal at the Bronx Zoo in New York City is believed to have contracted the disease from a zoo keeper who was showing no symptoms at the time.
Nadia, the tiger, and her sister Azul as well as two Amur tigers and three African lions had developed a dry cough and all are expected to fully recover, the Wildlife Conservation Society, which manages the zoo, said in a statement.
Paul Calle, chief veterinarian at the Bronx Zoo said that while other tigers and lions were also exhibiting symptoms, the zoo decided to test only Nadia because she was the sickest and had started to lose her appetite, and did not want to subject all the cats to anesthesia.
The zoo said that very little is known about how the virus will develop in animals like lions and tigers since various species react differently to new infections. Meanwhile, none of the zoo’s other big cats including four other tigers, snow leopards, cheetahs, a clouded leopard, an Amur leopard, a puma and a serval, are showing any signs of illness.
For now, the tigers are ok and all those tigers showing symptoms were housed in the zoo’s Tiger Mountain area.