Seven more big cats at Bronx Zoo test positive for coronavirus

Zoo officials said they believe the animals were exposed by a keeper who had the virus but wasn’t showing symptoms at the time.

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All the affected cats are doing well, with good appetites and much less coughing, the zoo said, news agency AP reported.

It is not clear when the additional tests on the three lions and four tigers were conducted or when the zoo received the results, the National Geographic added in the report. It also quoted a zoo spokesperson saying that the additional tests were done using fecal samples and did not require sedation.

Nadia, a 4-year-old female Malayan tiger at the Bronx Zoo, has tested positive for coronavirus (COVID-19) is seen in an undated handout photo provided by the Bronx zoo in New York. (Reuters)

In another development, two pet cats in New York state also tested positive, marking the first confirmed cases in companion animals in the United States, federal officials said. The cats, which had mild respiratory illnesses and are expected to recover, are thought to have contracted the virus from people in their households or neighbourhoods, the US Department of Agriculture and the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said.

US authorities say that while it appears some animals can get the virus from people, there’s no indication the animals are transmitting it to human beings.