Karen, a 28-year-old orangutan, became the first ape in the world to get a coronavirus vaccine on Jan. 26 at the San Diego Zoo.Karen has received two shots of a vaccine from Zoetis, a veterinary pharmaceutical company in New Jersey, and has shown no adverse reactions. Since then, nine other primates at the San Diego Zoo have been fully vaccinated: five bonobos and four orangutans.
"We will jump at the opportunity to get the Zoetis vaccine for our own great apes," said Oakland Zoo's veterinary director Alex Herman, who is ordering 100 doses. Great apes such as gorillas, which share 98% of their DNA with humans, are especially susceptible, as are felines. So far, confirmed coronavirus cases include gorillas, tigers and lions at zoos; domestic cats and dogs; farmed mink, and at least one wild mink in Utah.
In Denmark, workers at a mink farm accidentally infected the animals. As the coronavirus spread among the mink, it mutated -- and human handlers contracted the new variant. In response, the government ordered millions of mink to be killed.
This is good. But right now I’m more concerned about the other way around
yes - as Jane said - all must be concerned about the primates