U.S. veterinary group issues guidelines for handling Ebola exposure in pets

The American Veterinary Medical Association (AVMA) on Wednesday issued guidelines on how to handle pets of people exposed to the deadly Ebola virus, saying if an animal tests positive, it should be euthanized.

The AVMA said the guidelines have been in development since early October, when a dog in Spain was euthanized after its owner became sick from the Ebola virus.

A similar case emerged shortly afterwards in the U.S. state of Texas, where a nurse with a dog tested positive for Ebola. Unlike in Spain, the dog in Texas was placed in quarantine for 21 days and released after showing no symptoms and twice testing negative for the virus.

At this time, there have been no reports of dogs or cats becoming sick with Ebola or of being able to spread Ebola to people or animals including in areas of Africa, where Ebola has run rampant.

Under the new guidelines, people under direct active monitoring for Ebola should avoid contact with dogs, cats, livestock and other mammals and their dogs or cats should be cared for by someone else until the direct active monitoring period ends.

"Should a person become ill with Ebola, dogs, cats, and possibly other pets who came into contact with the patient must be assessed for exposure and may be placed in mandatory quarantine for at least 21 days following their last known exposure to the person with Ebola," the guidelines said. "This situation can be avoided if the pet is moved out of the residence of the person being monitored for Ebola before any symptoms start in the person. "

The guidelines also said the animal's handlers should wear personal protective equipment when caring for the pet while in its enclosure, or when handling waste material.

Currently, routine testing for Ebola is not available for pets, the AVMA said.

"Ebola virus testing of animal samples will be limited to cases where testing is specifically warranted based on the type of exposure assessment in consultation with CDC (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention) on a case-by-case basis," the association said.

If an animal has a confirmed positive test result, "the animal should be euthanized and the body incinerated," according to the guidelines. Enditem