Health officials: Illinois cat tests positive for COVID-19

Coronavirus
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FILE – This undated electron microscope image made available by the U.S. National Institutes of Health in February 2020 shows the Novel Coronavirus SARS-CoV-2. Also known as 2019-nCoV, the virus causes COVID-19. The sample was isolated from a patient in the U.S. On Tuesday, April 21, 2020, U.S. health regulators OK’d the first coronavirus test that allows people to collect their own sample at home, a new approach that could help expand testing options in most states. The sample will still have to be shipped for processing back to LabCorp, which operates diagnostic labs throughout the U.S. (NIAID-RML via AP)

ILLINOIS (WCIA) — The Illinois Department of Public Health said a cat in Illinois has tested positive for COVID-19.

They said the cat tested positive for the virus after getting sick in mid-May. They were in a home with people who also tested positive for COVID-19. IDPH did not say which county the cat lived in.

Officials said this is the first animal to test positive for the virus in Illinois. “There is no evidence COVID-19 is transmitted from animals to humans.” However, they advise for you to distance yourself from pets if you are sick.

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