HONG KONG -- When Colleen Wu takes her two-year-old dog for a walk these days, she covers its mouth with a muzzle.

Wu, who lives in the city of Yangzhou in China's eastern Jiangsu Province, believes that can help prevent her dog, a Labrador retriever and German shepherd mix named Annie, from biting anything that might contain the new coronavirus. She also sanitizes Annie and the products her cherished dog uses when they return home.

Fears among pet owners are rising this week after a dog in Hong Kong tested positive for the coronavirus, noted by authorities as "low-level of infection," despite the lack of evidence that humans can contract the potentially deadly virus from household animals.

Wu believes that some people are overreacting to the news. "If the threat is real, Wuhan should have already had a major outbreak among pets," she said. "But we haven't seen that."

While experts consulted by Hong Kong health authorities agree that it is likely to be the world's first case of human-to-animal transmission, the Pomeranian has not shown any symptoms of the coronavirus, which causes the disease known as COVID-19. The dog currently is being held in quarantine following repeated tests that show "weak positive" results from samples of its nasal and oral cavities.

A woman with her dog in Hong Kong on March 5. Animal shelters in the city have been receiving queries over the possibility of companion animals being infectious or capable of spreading the coronavirus. © AP

Health officials have emphasized there is no indication that pets are a source of infection of the coronavirus or that they can become sick with the disease. The test results indicated only that the Pomeranian had been exposed to the virus.

"There is no evidence that dogs play a role in the spread of this human disease," according to the World Organization for Animal Health. "Further studies are needed to understand if and how different animals could be affected by COVID-19 virus."

Still, animal shelters in Hong Kong and concerned groups have been receiving queries over the possibility of companion animals being infectious or capable of spreading the virus, with some pet owners going as far as considering surrendering their furry friends.

The Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals in Hong Kong, the largest independent animal welfare charity group in the city, says queries about pet abandonments are on the rise, but there is not a sudden increase in surrender cases.

A spokesperson at the SPCA said previous experience with the severe acute respiratory syndrome shows that a small number of pets tested positive, but none fell ill. "We are glad to see more people now making decisions based on facts and correct knowledge," the spokesperson said.

Hong Kong health authorities say that apart from maintaining good hygiene practices, pet owners need not be overly concerned and urge that under no circumstances should they abandon their pets. © AP

However, some desperate pet owners are taking extraordinary protective measures, to an extent that they could cause harm to the health of their pets. A heated debate has erupted on Chinese social media over the use of a particularly risky type of disinfectant -- strong chemical liquids known as "84 disinfectants," which are normally used to sterilize buildings -- to wash pets.

While many believe it is a convenient way to keep pets virus-free, Louise Cheng, a veterinarian in the western Chinese city of Chongqing, warns that it could cause skin damage to animals.

"There was also such practice during SARS," she said. "Many pets developed very severe skin diseases from that and suffered for years," she said. Cheng said that using alcohol-based disinfectants that humans use to wash hands is sufficient enough for pets.

Cheng said there has been a rise in the cases of pet euthanasia in China since the coronavirus outbreak. "Many owners became panicky, and they made very irrational decisions," she said, adding that some were misled by rumors that pets can pass the disease to humans.

She said preventing human-to-human transmission is the key to battling the disease, but the focus has shifted somewhat to pets. "We should really think about why animals always take the heat when an outbreak like this happens."

A man wearing face mask looks at dogs at a pet shop in Hong Kong, Thursday, March 5, 2020. © AP

Hong Kong health authorities say that apart from maintaining good hygiene practices, pet owners need not be overly concerned and urge that under no circumstances should they abandon their pets. They have also called for pet owners to wash their hands before and after being around animals, as well as restricting contact with animals if owners are sick.

Meanwhile, Hong Kong's Department of Health "strongly advises" mammalian pet animals, including dogs and cats, from households with coronavirus patients or their close contacts should be put under quarantine.

Although there is no evidence that shows the coronavirus can be passed from pets to humans, some pet owners say they feel that more people are pointing fingers at them.

Andrea Zhu, who lives in the southern Chinese city of Shenzhen, says some people in her neighborhood have made disparaging comments when she walks her four-year-old Pomeranian down the stairs of her apartment building.

"I heard one say, 'How come she still keeps a dog at such a time?'" Zhu said. To avoid getting infected herself -- and unfriendly neighbors -- Zhu now takes her dog out only every few days instead of twice a day.

"To be honest, I am not afraid of my dog getting the virus," she said. "I am more afraid of people's talk."