The first cases of COVID-19 in deer have been confirmed by the US.
In a statement, the U.S. Department of Agriculture confirmed that infections of COVID-19 were found in wild white-tailed deer in the state of Ohio.
In an email to Reuters, USDA spokeswoman Lyndsay Cole said, “We do not know how the deer were exposed to SARS-CoV-2. It’s possible they were exposed through people, the environment, other deer, or another animal species.”
The department has said that the deer showed no symptoms of the virus.
Previously, COVID-19 infections were reported in dogs, cats, lions, minks, tigers, etc. Most of these have come about after the species had close contact with a person carrying the virus.
Last month, the USDA analyzed serum samples from free-ranging deer for antibodies and reported that white-tailed deer populations in Illinois, Michigan, New York, and Pennsylvania were exposed to COVID-19.
