Dog Contracts Monkeypox From Owners in First Suspected Case of Human-to-Pet Transmission

The case has prompted scientists to start a debate on the need to isolate pets from their owners if the latter have been diagnosed with the disease.

The medical journal The Lancet has reported the first confirmed case of human-to-pet transmission of monkeypox.

A four-year-old Italian greyhound had been sharing a bed with its owners at their home in France when they went to see a doctor in Paris in June after developing ulcers. About two weeks later, lesions appeared on the dog's abdomen, and researchers at Sorbonne University confirmed the pet had also caught monkeypox.

According to medical scientists, infection among domesticated animals has never been reported before. The case in France has prompted a debate on whether pet owners who have been diagnosed with monkeypox should isolate their dogs and cats.

Since early May, when the first cases of monkeypox were reported in non-endemic countries, the number of confirmed cases has exceeded 31,000, the World Health Organization (WHO) said.