Are Pets Safe From the Human Coronavirus COVID-19?

Leading Medical Insurer for Pets Confirms Their Data Shows No Unusual Changes in Frequency of Illness over the Last 45 Days

North American pet owners be reassured that there are no early signs of their beloved pets being negatively impacted by the human COVID-19 (Coronavirus) Outbreak.

Trupanion, a leading provider of medical insurance for cats and dogs, confirmed today that they have seen no unusual increase or change in the frequency of illnesses in their extensive pet health database. The Seattle-based pet company, now in its third decade, has paid out over $1 billion in veterinary invoices and is constantly reviewing data to monitor changes in veterinary medicine to understand any underlying changes related to regular illness patterns.

Vice President of Analytics, Mary Rothlisberger confirmed: “We monitor our data on a very granular level; daily, weekly and monthly and by breed, country, city and even at a neighborhood level to make sure we understand and are on top of any health-related trends that might be out of the norm. As of today, we have not seen any increases or changes in the frequency of illnesses that would appear unusual.”

Dr. Steve Weinrauch, BVMS, MRCVS, Trupanion’s Chief Veterinary Officer explained: “With the recent news regarding a pet dog in Hong Kong being quarantined after testing ‘weak positive’ for COVID-19, we have experienced increasing concern from our members regarding the health of their pets. We want to provide them and other loving pet owners with some peace of mind. We understand that a pet is a member of the family and it’s natural to be worried for all of your loved ones.”

The U.S Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) have further confirmed that no animals in the United States have been identified with the virus and there is no evidence to suggest that dogs, or other pets can contract or spread COVID-19.

Just as it has for the last 20+ years, Trupanion wants to continue to reassure existing or new members that coverage includes any medical issues that occur after enrollment and that our team is on hand 24/7 to support any questions they may have.

Weinrauch continues: “It is important to Trupanion that we make sure everyone has the latest information in terms of what we see show up in our data. If things do change, we will be letting members, pet owners and veterinarians know immediately. In the meantime, as always, if there’s ever anything that you’re worried about and you notice your pet acting under the weather, you should visit your trusted veterinarian.”

Helpful sources of information
https://www.avma.org/blog/what-do-you-need-know-about-coronavirus
https://www.avma.org/sites/default/files/2020-02/AVMA-Human-Coronavirus-Summary.pdf
https://www.avma.org/sites/default/files/2020-02/AVMA-Coronavirus-Taxonomy-Notes.pdf
https://www.avma.org/sites/default/files/2020-02/AVMA-Detailed-Coronoavirus-Taxonomy-2020-02-03.pdf