Jung Min-ho has worked as a staff writer at The Korea Times since 2012, mostly covering social and political issues. He currently belongs to the Politics & City Desk where he covers topics such as health, labor and human rights. Prior to joining the team, he was responsible for covering North Korea and sports. His article about a biosecurity breach of Middle East respiratory syndrome won him an award from the Korea Science Journalists Association in 2016. He is also the co-author of the book, "Medical Pioneers of Korea" (2019). He served as the head of the international relations committee at the Journalists Association of Korea from 2021 to 2023.
Coronavirus: Hong Kong dog believed to be first case of human-to-animal transmission
A dog wearing a face mask is seen on a Shanghai street on March 2 as China battles the COVID-19 outbreak. Reuters
By Jung Min-ho
By Jung Min-ho
A pet dog in Hong Kong has contracted COVID-19 from its owner in what could be the first known human-to-animal transmission, local health authorities said Wednesday.
The Pomeranian is now under quarantine after repeated tests confirmed a “low-level infection” of the virus, though it shows no symptoms of the disease, a spokesman for Hong Kong's Agriculture, Fisheries and Conservation Department said.
The results conflict with the World Health Organization's (WHO) official stance that “there is no evidence that companion animals/pets such as dogs or cats can be infected with the new coronavirus.”
However, the spokesman stressed there is no evidence that pets could pass the virus to their owners.
“Apart from maintaining good hygiene practices, pet owners need not be overly concerned and under no circumstances should they abandon their pets,” he said.
Further tests will be conducted on the dog; it will not be released from quarantine until the rest results are negative.