In the Chilean city of Valparaiso, 15 people immediately became infected with the coronavirus during the celebration of the cat’s birthday, writes the Daily Mail.
The party in honor of the holiday was attended by 10 people whose infection test results were positive. Five more infected are relatives of the owner of the cat. It is noted that the condition of some patients is assessed as serious, they are in the hospital.
According to experts, the owner of the cat could be patient zero. At the same time, the animal itself is not infected with the coronavirus, says Gazeta.ru.
“When I heard that the outbreak happened after the cat’s birthday, I thought it was a joke – they were probably trying to hide something,” said Regional Secretary of the Ministry of Health Francisco Alvarez.
He added that he cannot believe that people continue to gather in droves despite warnings from the authorities.
On January 15, it was reported that the first in Russia genetic study of the SARS-CoV-2 virus detected in a domestic cat was carried out in St. Petersburg.
It was noted that the animal could have been infected from owners who suffered mild COVID-19. The cat took the infection harder: he had a fever, he was in apathy and refused to eat.