Coronavirus: unprotected pets if their owners die 3:04
(CNN) - Buddy, a 7-year-old German shepherd from Staten Island, New York, who was the first dog to test positive for a coronavirus in the United States, died on July 11 after being ill for three months, according to National Geographic.
It is unclear if Buddy died of complications from the coronavirus, which he probably caught from his owner Robert Mahoney, who previously tested positive, or if he died of lymphoma.
Two vets who were not part of his treatment, but who checked Buddy's medical records for National Geographic, told the publication that the dog likely had cancer.
The dog became ill in April and Mahoney suspected it had the virus, but it wasn't until mid-May that the family finally found a vet to examine him and confirm that Buddy was infected.
"You tell people that your dog was positive and they look at you [as if you have] ten heads," Robert Mahoney's owner and wife, Allison, told the magazine.
By June 2, the US Department of Agriculture (USDA) confirmed that Buddy was the first dog to test positive for the coronavirus in the country.
Fewer than 25 dogs and cats have been confirmed to be infected with coronavirus in the U.S., according to the USDA.
There is no mandatory testing requirement for animals living in households with covid-19 positive people, so it is unknown how many pets in the US could be infected and if those with underlying human-like health conditions They may be at greater risk.
The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention offers guidance on caring for a pet with covid-19, but information on testing or collecting information for veterinarians is not included, as there is not yet Solid facts about how the virus affects pets.
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