Roosevelt Park Zoo staff will increase the required use of personal protective equipment during animal care, following an incident at the Bronx Zoo in which a tiger became ill with COVID-19.

The zoo announced Monday that protocols will be updated to reflect PPE use during interaction with species proven to be at a higher risk for contracting COVID-19 from human keepers. Staff will use surgical face masks and gloves during interaction with cats, otters and ferrets. These species are part of the felid and mustelid families – the two most at risk in the zoo’s care.

Roosevelt Park Zoo veterinarian Dr. Logan Wood will continue to monitor human-to-animal transmission reports. Additional species may be recommended in the future. For now, the zoo will work to preserve surgical and N95 masks to accommodate the human medical needs.

Zoo staff will continue to practice social distancing, hand washing, cleaning and foot bath protocols for all interactions with animals and each other. Staff will continue to observe the existing protocol for the use of gloves and surgical masks during interactions with non-human primates. Cloth masks are optional for staff use in other animal areas.

The Bronx Zoo announced April 5 that a Malayan tiger had tested positive for COVID-19. That case has been confirmed by the U.S. Department of Agriculture. The Bronx Zoo had tested all big cats on April 3 after observing upper respiratory symptoms and lethargy. One keeper was asymptomatic and tested positive. The Bronx Zoo increased PPE for all non-domestic felids.

Wood is active in several nationwide veterinary networks, including the American Association of Zoo Veterinarians and the Association of Zoos Aquariums. He said that in March, computer-based modeling was used to determine which animals are at a higher risk of contracting COVID-19 and/or serving as a host for antigenic shift of the virus RNA, creating a potential risk for felids and mustelids to contract the virus. In most lab settings, those species showed no clinical signs of COVID-19, while the Bronx Zoo reported observable symptoms.

“Health and safety of both humans and animals at Roosevelt Park Zoo will continue to be top priority. Protocols will evolve as needed in order to guard that priority as new information becomes available,” according to a zoo news release.