Articles – Page 6 – Nathan J. Winograd

USDA: First “Confirmed” U.S. Dog to Test Positive for SARS-CoV-2

By Nathan J. Winograd | June 4, 2020June 6, 2020 by Nathan J. Winograd

The U.S. Department of Agriculture, which oversees the National Veterinary Services Laboratory, announced a confirmed case of the virus that causes COVID-19 in a dog. According to the USDA, this is “the first dog in the United States to test positive for SARS-CoV-2.” The agency was silent as to whether the dog had any kind of underlying condition prior to infection, but it did state that there is no evidence of dogs passing the virus…

USDA: First Dog Claimed to Be Positive for COVID-19 was Negative

By Nathan J. Winograd | May 29, 2020May 30, 2020 by Nathan J. Winograd

Last month, a researcher at Duke University claimed that Winston, a pug, was the first dog in the U.S. to test positive for SARS-CoV-2, the virus the causes COVID-19. Initially, Winston “wasn’t tested because they thought he was sick,” but as part of a research project at Duke University. Given that two dogs in Hong Kong who also were reported to be positive had either negative confirmatory or mixed test results, a positive confirmation in…

Articles Corruption

L.A. Times: Animal charity run by con staged abuse of dogs

By Nathan J. Winograd | May 29, 2020May 30, 2020 by Nathan J. Winograd

(Warning: Graphic description of a dog being killed.) There are things you see that you cannot unsee. The video of a dog being hanged and burned alive in Indonesia, appeared multiple times on my Twitter feed some time back. Because of it, I stopped looking at my feed. I haven’t since. I go on to Twitter via my profile page to post. Although it’s been years since I saw it, I still think about it…

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No Defense: Shelters are Trying to Salvage Temp Tests

By Nathan J. Winograd | May 26, 2020 by Nathan J. Winograd

There is not a single temperament test used to evaluate shelter dogs that is reliable in predicting behavior. Over the last several years, a wide body of research has shown this again and again with one study concluding, based on over 25 years of data, that there is “no evidence that any canine behavior evaluation has come close to meeting accepted standards for reliability and validity.” While shocking, it should not be surprising since these…

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CA Governor Withdraws Financial Support for No Kill State

By Nathan J. Winograd | May 21, 2020 by Nathan J. Winograd

California Governor Gavin Newsom appears to have withdrawn his No Kill initiative. Earlier this year, he announced to great fanfare he wanted California to become a No Kill state and budgeted $50,000,000 to do so. That money now seems to be have been quietly cut from his revised budget. After it disappeared from the budget summary, I reached out to Hannah Wiley, a political reporter for the Sacramento Bee, who writes on budget issues and…

Articles COVID-19

False Alarm: Cats and COVID-19

By Nathan J. Winograd | May 17, 2020May 18, 2020 by Nathan J. Winograd

Study which claims cats can “easily” transmit SARS-CoV-2, the virus which causes COVID-19, to each other and expresses concern about transmission to people shows no such thing. Late last week, CBS News published a somewhat alarmist article called, “Study shows cats can easily spread coronavirus to each other”. The article also expressed concern about cat-to-human transmission of SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19. Similar articles appeared in The New York Times, CNN, USA Today, Fox…

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Gov’t Officials Can’t Ban Shelter Reformers on Social Media

By Nathan J. Winograd | May 4, 2020 by Nathan J. Winograd

In a victory for free speech — and a victory for anyone who has spoken out on behalf of animals mistreated, abused, and killed in city pounds — the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 5th Circuit has put the final nail on the coffin for public officials who delete comments or ban people for criticizing them or their policies on social media. It is the third appellate ruling (out of three) to rule that…

Articles COVID-19

Can Dogs Become Infected with the Novel Coronavirus?

By Nathan J. Winograd | May 1, 2020May 17, 2020 by Nathan J. Winograd

Recent reports suggest that a dog in the U.S. has tested positive for the novel coronavirus that causes COVID-19. Winston, a pug, and the humans in his family tested positive. The family noted that Winston “wasn’t tested because they thought he was sick,” but as part of a research project at Duke University. Winston is the first dog in the U.S. reported to test positive and the third in the world (two in Hong Kong),…

Articles COVID-19

COVID-19 in Two U.S. Cats

By Nathan J. Winograd | April 24, 2020May 17, 2020 by Nathan J. Winograd

Should we be overtly worried about our cats? And should we fear cats? The answer to both questions remains, “no.” Two cats with mild respiratory issues in New York, from different parts of the state, tested positive for COVID-19. They are the first two pet cats to test positive in the U.S. Outside the U.S., only two other cats have tested positive. They both recovered. By comparison, 2.7 million humans have been confirmed to have…

Articles COVID-19

The Death of a TNR Pioneer

By Nathan J. Winograd | April 22, 2020May 17, 2020 by Nathan J. Winograd

Donald Kennedy died of COVID-19 yesterday. Kennedy was the President of Stanford University when I started there as a law student oh so many years ago. He will be remembered by many people for many things. But I will remember him for being a TNR pioneer. During his tenure, a population of roughly 1,000 cats lived on campus when University officials announced a plan to trap and remove the cats. That announcement was met with…