Cats and coronavirus: Vet chiefs urge people to keep pets indoors and avoid hugging them to prevent Covid-19 spread

Cat owners should keep their pets indoors and avoid hugging them to mitigate the spread of coronavirus, veterinary scientists have said.

Research has shown cats may be able to catch Covid-19 from other cats, with the British Veterinary Association (BVA) warning that owners should take “sensible precautions”.

However, the BVA has also been quick to stress that they “should not worry" about the risk of infection from their pets.

"There isn't a single case of a pet dog or cat infecting a human with Covid-19," Dr Angel Almendros, from City University in Hong Kong, told BBC News.

To prevent pets from carrying the disease from human hands in their fur, BVA president Daniella Dos Santos said people should "practise good hand hygiene” and “try and keep cats indoors.”

She said: "Avoid unnecessary contact with your pets, such a hugging or allowing them to lick your face, and do not touch other people's dogs when on walks."

Dr Almendros stressed that even if pets contract the virus, there is no evidence they suffer any symptoms.

He said in a recent paper: "But even where we have these positive results, the animals are not becoming sick.”

The World Health Organisation has also emphasised that, while there has been one instance of a dog being infected in Hong Kong, there is no evidence a cat, dog or any pet can transmit the disease.

The virus is mainly spread through droplets produced when an infected person coughs, sneezes, or speaks.