Prof. Scott Weese, a veterinary internal medicine specialist and chief of infection control at U of G’s Ontario Veterinary College, spoke to several media outlets about a Niagara-area dog that tested positive for COVID-19.

Weese, who is the director of U of G’s Centre for Public Health and Zoonoses (CPHAZ), is part of the research team that identified the Niagara case.

He told the Toronto Star that the dog had no symptoms and a low viral load, suggesting that dogs remain at relatively low risk of becoming gravely ill. Other dogs in Canada have likely become infected, he added, but because dogs recover quickly, he and his team have missed the window for testing them.

Speaking with The Canadian Press, Weese noted that pet owners should not be worried about their animals falling ill.

“It’s a human virus,” he said. “…We’ve got probably not uncommon human-to-dog infection, but the dogs rarely, if ever, get sick.”

That article was published in several publications across Canada, including CTVNews.ca and GlobalNews.ca. CBC Radio’s Ontario Morning and Global News Toronto Morning also spoke with Weese.

CBC Hamilton and CTV Kitchener also spoke with Weese about the infected dog, whose name was Maci.