Tiger at Bronx Zoo Tests Positive for Covid-19 Coronavirus

Posted on April 5, 2020

A 4-year-old Malayan tiger at the Bronx Zoo in New York has tested positive for Covid-19 coronavirus. Three other tigers and three lions have also developed a dry cough. The lions and tigers are all expected to recover.

The announcement was made in a press release from the Wildlife Conservation Society’s Bronx Zoo. The tiger's name is Nadia. The zoo says they tested Nadia "out of an abundance of caution and will ensure any knowledge we gain about COVID-19 will contribute to the world’s continuing understanding of this novel coronavirus."

The zoo says the big cats have also experienced some decrease in appetite.

Though they have experienced some decrease in appetite, the cats at the Bronx Zoo are otherwise doing well under veterinary care and are bright, alert, and interactive with their keepers. It is not known how this disease will develop in big cats since different species can react differently to novel infections, but we will continue to monitor them closely and anticipate full recoveries.
There are other tigers, leopards and a puma at the zoo that have shown no signs of illness. The zoo says the person caring for the big cats was asymptomatically infected with Covid-19.

There have been other reports that cats can get the coronavirus but they don't seem to get as sick some humans - see Nature and CNN.

Photo: WCS
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