While a large number of Manitobans have already received the COVID-19 vaccine, Winnipeg’s zoo is looking at the possibility of vaccinating some of its animals as well.
“It’s in the process of being approved,” the Assiniboine Park Zoo’s Dr. Chris Enright told 680 CJOB.
“This is a vaccine that’s in the works for domestic animals, and there’s been emergency approvals given in the United States to assist some zoos in the vaccination of their animals. We’re working on the same here in Canada.”
Does this mean your pets will need to get the shot? Not exactly, said Enright, the zoo’s director of veterinary services and animal welfare.
“What tends to happen is that people get sick with COVID and just as they can spread it to other people, they can spread it to animals.
“Sometimes that’s a dog or cat at home — that has happened rarely — and it has also happened in a zoo situation where it has spilled over to animals that are susceptible to this virus, particularly great apes like gorillas, and then members of the cat family, like lions, tigers and leopards.”
Enright said animals can get similar symptoms as people, and get very sick with pneumonia and respiratory diseases — although the majority of animals with COVID-19 recover.
If approved, the zoo would be looking at holding a vaccine clinic for all susceptible animals, where some would “volunteer” to get the shot in exchange for a treat, while others would need to be anesthetized.
Enright said that there’s no real timeline for when an animal vaccine might be approved in Canada, but that the zoo is “ramping up and ready to go” for if and when it occurs.