Coronavirus in Turkey: Pets abandoned amid fears of contagion
As diagnoses of Covid-19 continue to rise, activists record sharp increase in animal abandonment
By
Ragip Soylu
inAnkara
Published date: 2 April 2020 11:26 UTC | Last update: 4 days 18 hours ago
Pets in Turkey are being abandoned in increasing numbers while other animals are being left to starve, as Turkey's
coronavirus crisis deepens, according to animal rights activists.
Turkish media reports and misconceptions about the disease have caused many to believe that domestic animals, including dogs and cats, can pass the contagion on to humans.
...
The World Organisation for Animal Health (OIE) and World Health Organisation (WHO) have both repeatedly said that the coronavirus pandemic is spreading through human-to-human transmission.
“To date,
there is no evidence that companion animals have spread the disease. Therefore, there is no justification in taking measures against companion animals which may compromise their welfare,” the OIE said in a statement.
...
The Harbin Veterinary Research Institute in China has also
indicated that cats can catch the virus,
but reported that there was no evidence that the animals were contagious enough to infect people...
