Pet health
FILE - In this Thursday, April 2, 2020 file photo, a traveler wearing a hazmat suit tends to his dog in a carrier before boarding a plane at the Narita International Airport in Nairta, near Tokyo. U.S. health officials are planning to temporarily ban importation of dogs from more than 100 countries that are considered at high risk for rabies, planned to go into effect on July 14, 2021. Japan is not included in the ban. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong, File)
US bans dogs brought in from 100 countries with rabies risk

By Mike Stobbe Jun. 14, 2021 03:07 PM EDT

Bobby, a Labrador Retriever in training, sits front of a human sweat sample after detecting the COVID-19 coronavirus at the Veterinary Faculty of Chulalongkorn University in Bangkok, Thailand Friday, May 21, 2021. Thailand has deployed a canine virus detection squad to help provide a fast and effective way of identifying people with COVID-19 as the country faces a surge in cases, with clusters found in several crowded slum communities and large markets. (AP Photo/Sakchai Lalit)
Sniffing Labrador retrievers join Thai coronavirus fight

By Tassanee Vejpongsa May. 21, 2021 10:12 AM EDT

German Chancellor Angela Merkel arrives for a press conference at the Chancellery in Berlin, Germany, Friday, May 21, 2021 following the virtual 'Global Health Summit'. (AP Photo/Michael Sohn, pool)
The Latest: Sri Lanka halts trains, buses to curb virus

By The Associated Press May. 21, 2021 12:56 AM EDT

Veterinary technician supervisor Jean Lyons changes the bandages on a dog named Murphy, Monday, April 12, 2021, at Veterinary Specialty Hospital of Palm Beach Gardens in Palm Beach Gardens, Fla. Approximately 12.6 million U.S. households got a new pet last year after the pandemic was declared in March 2020, according to a COVID-19 Pulse Study by the American Pet Products Association. Meanwhile, fewer people relinquished their pets in 2020, so they needed ongoing care, experts said. Vets interviewed by The Associated Press have extended hours, hired additional staff and refused to take new patients, and they still can't keep up. (AP Photo/Wilfredo Lee)
COVID-19 pet boom has veterinarians backlogged, burned out

By Kelli Kennedy May. 12, 2021 01:11 AM EDT

A funeral worker removes empty coffins that held remains that were later cremated, at La Recoleta cemetery in Santiago, Chile, Wednesday, April 21, 2021, amid the new coronavirus pandemic. (AP Photo/Esteban Felix)
Chile vets fined for giving dog vaccines against COVID-19

Apr. 21, 2021 02:13 PM EDT

FILE - In this Tuesday, Feb. 11, 2020, file photo, Siba, a standard poodle, competes for Best in Show during 144th Westminster Kennel Club dog show in New York. America's top dogs won't have fans at this year's Westminster Kennel Club dog show. The club announced Monday, March 29, 2021, that spectators and vendors won't be allowed this year because of coronavirus limitations. It's the latest in a series of pandemic shakeups to the nation's most prestigious canine competition, which will be held June 12-13 and has moved from New York City's Hudson River piers and Madison Square Garden to an outdoor setting 25 miles north of Manhattan. (AP Photo/John Minchillo, File)
Westminster dog show won't have spectators due to virus

Mar. 29, 2021 07:33 PM EDT

Past Iditarod champions Joar Ulsom, right, and Pete Kaiser pose for a photo with Richie Diehl, left, in the Ophir, Alaska, during the Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race on Friday, March 12, 2021. The three are close friends and have been traveling close together for sections of the race. (Zachariah Hughes/Anchorage Daily News via AP, Pool)
Dog illness prompts former Iditarod champion to scratch

By Mark Thiessen Mar. 13, 2021 05:08 PM EST

Editorial Roundup: New York

By The Associated Press Mar. 10, 2021 08:16 PM EST
Oneonta Daily Star. March 5, 2021. Editorial: Spring must be right around the corner. Crocuses and daffodils have been...

Owners and their pets take part in the annual dog Carnival parade in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, Saturday, Feb. 13, 2021. Rio's Carnival festivities were canceled due to the new coronavirus pandemic, but pet lovers from around the city gathered for the tradition that drew participants with their furry, four-legged companions to compete for best costume. (AP Photo/Silvia Izquierdo)
Human festivities scrapped, Rio's Carnival goes to the dogs

By Marcelo Silva De Sousa Feb. 13, 2021 12:50 PM EST

Miami Heat head coach Erik Spoelstra gestures during the first half of an NBA basketball game against the Detroit Pistons, Monday, Jan. 18, 2021, in Miami. (AP Photo/Marta Lavandier)
Heat to use COVID-19-sniffing dogs to screen fans at games

By Tim Reynolds Jan. 24, 2021 11:23 AM EST

In this photo provided by Mike Thom, Mike Thom's wife, Emily Benavides, poses with her cat, Humito, Dec. 9, 2020, in Washington. Benavides, a U.S. Senate staffer, is learning her cat's language. Humito (Spanish for Smokey), the 3-year-old rescue cat she's had most of his life, has different-sounding “Meows” to communicate that he wants to eat, wants to nap or has knocked his toy under the refrigerator. (Mike Thom via AP)
Left behind: How to prepare pets for a post-pandemic life

By The Associated Press Dec. 31, 2020 04:50 AM EST

In this photo provided by Raghav Ranjan, Devika Ranjan smiles at her cat, Aloo, on Dec. 13, 2020, in Andover, Mass. Ranjan, a theater director in Chicago, wanted pandemic company and got a rescue cat she named Aloo during the summer. The formerly feral cat is believed to be around 3, and seems to be very comfortable with a slow-paced, high-attention pandemic life. “My working from home, I think he loves it,” she says. “I think he is just ready to settle down in life. If he were human, he'd probably sit on the couch with a PBR (beer) and watch TV all day." (Raghav Ranjan via AP)
Changes, challenges: The not-so-secret life of pandemic pets

By Dan Sewell Dec. 31, 2020 04:39 AM EST

Snow leopard at Kentucky zoo tests positive for coronavirus

Dec. 11, 2020 12:47 PM EST
LOUISVILLE, Ky. (AP) — A snow leopard at a Kentucky zoo is the first in the U.S. to test positive for the coronavirus, federal officials announced Friday. ...

Medical staff spray each other with disinfectant as a colleague collects a nasal swab for a rapid test, inside a COVID-19 testing and triage center that has been set up in the Central de Abastos, the capital's main market, in Mexico City, Tuesday, Dec. 8, 2020.(AP Photo/Rebecca Blackwell)
Mexico's COVID-19 deaths average 55 years vs. 75 in Europe

Dec. 10, 2020 09:37 PM EST

A dog peers out from a kennel after the landing of a "Paws Across the Pacific" pet rescue flight Thursday, Oct. 29, 2020, in Seattle. Volunteer organizations flew more than 600 dogs and cats from shelters across Hawaii to the U.S. mainland, calling it the largest pet rescue ever. The animals are being taken from overcrowded facilities in the islands to shelters in Washington state, Oregon, Idaho, and Montana. (AP Photo/Elaine Thompson)
Hundreds of shelter dogs, cats flown across the Pacific

By Jennifer Sinco Kelleher Oct. 29, 2020 06:20 PM EDT

Sniffer dogs Miina, left, and K'ssi at the Helsinki airport in Vantaa, Finland, Wednesday Sept. 22, 2020. Finland has deployed coronavirus-sniffing dogs at the Nordic country’s main international airport in a four-month trial of an alternative testing method that could become a cost-friendly way to identify infected travelers. (Antti Aimo-Koivisto/Lehtikuva via AP)
Finland deploys coronavirus-sniffing dogs at main airport

By Jari Tanner Sep. 23, 2020 10:26 AM EDT

FILE - In this March 24, 2020 file photo, a woman walks past a dog sculpture on the campus of the North Carolina State University College of Veterinary Medicine in Raleigh, N.C. North Carolina public health officials have reported the state's first confirmed coronavirus case in a dog. The Department of Health and Human Services says there is an ongoing investigation into the cause of death. The department said the dog was taken to the N.C. State Veterinary Hospital on Aug. 3 with respiratory issues and died later that day. (AP Photo/Allen G. Breed, File)
North Carolina dog that tested positive for coronavirus dies

By Bryan Anderson Aug. 11, 2020 02:57 PM EDT

COVID virus detected in S.C. dog after owner tested positive

Jul. 18, 2020 10:56 AM EDT
COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP) — A dog in South Carolina has tested positive for the virus that causes COVID-19 in humans, the first confirmed animal detection of the...

Vermont agriculture agency warns of rabbit disease

Jul. 12, 2020 02:46 PM EDT
MONTPELIER, Vt. (AP) — The Vermont Agency of Agriculture is warning rabbit owners about an exotic disease that affects both wild and domestic rabbits and is...

State: Dog has first case of coronavirus in Texas animal

Jul. 09, 2020 09:02 PM EDT
AUSTIN, Texas (AP) — A North Texas dog has been found to have the first coronavirus infection confirmed in a Texas animal, state officials said. ...