Buddy, a German Shepherd, has died. He was American’s first pet dog to test positive for Covid-19. He was aged seven and lived in New York. He first had the symptoms in mid-April. It took a month to get him a test for coronavirus.
On June 2 his owners received a call from New York City’s health Department telling them that Buddy had tested positive. The owner’s other dog, also a German Shepherd, tested negative. He was ill for several months. He had difficulty breathing, became lethargic and grew thinner. His veterinarian tried heart medications, steroids and other treatments without success.
On the morning of his death, Buddy’s owner, Alison Mahoney, saw him vomiting in the kitchen. He was vomiting blood as if his insides were coming out. She said that he had it all over and it was coming from his nose and mouth. She knew that there was nothing she could do even though he had the will to carry on living.
She rushed him to her veterinarian who euthanised him. Alison said that buddy was like a son and that:
I cleaned him up before we drove to the vet and stayed with him in the back seat. I said, “I will have your voice heard, for all our furry friends, Buddy”.
