New research shows that horses and other livestock most likely did not play a role in the transmission of COVID-19. Scientists at Colorado State University and the University of Queensland in Australia, lead by Dr. Angela Bosco-Lauth, infected alpacas, cattle, goats, one horse, rabbits and sheep with the COVID-19 virus intranasally.
None of the animals used in the study had the virus detectable in their saliva, through nasal secretions, or through their feces throughout the study period. However, one calf, two goats, and a rabbit did show viral RNA in nasal and oral swabs, which suggests they may be minimally permissive to infection.
None of the animals displayed clinical signs of infection or had a fever after being infected with COVID-19.
The study team concluded that domestic livestock are unlikely to contribute to the spread of COVID-19 and also that they are unlikely to be involved in reverse zoonosis, or the infection of animals by humans.
Read more at HorseTalk.
New to the Paulick Report? Click here to sign up for our daily email newsletter to keep up on this and other stories happening in the Thoroughbred industry.
Copyright © 2021 Paulick Report.
