Men in hazardous materials suits removed the dog of a Dallas nurse infected with Ebola from her apartment on Monday, placing the pet named Bentley in a cage and taking him to an undisclosed location where he will be watched for signs of the virus.
"Bentley is safe," Dallas spokeswoman Sana Syed said on her Twitter feed of the pet who has been under the spotlight after officials in Madrid put down the dog of a Spanish nurse who contacted Ebola while caring for a patient.
Bentley, a 1-year-old King Charles Spaniel, belongs to a health worker at a Dallas hospital who contracted Ebola while caring for a patient and was placed in an isolation ward over the weekend. The worker has been identified in media reports as Nina Pham, a 26-year-old nurse.
"He's adorable. Clearly a little puzzled by what's going on. But he's in good hands now and will be taken care of," Syed said. The city and Dallas County have pledged to take good care of him and provide pictures and updates on his status to the health worker's family.
On Sunday, Bentley was fed by protection-suit-clad members of a hazmat team tasked with decontaminating the worker's apartment. They left a light on for the dog when they left so he would not be in the dark overnight.
Dallas Animal Services said the rescue of Pham's dog was "a bit of a challenge" and it will release pictures of the dog after the family has had the chance to see the images.
The elderly female dog of a healthcare worker in Spain who contracted Ebola while treating an infected patient was put down for fear the animal could spread the disease despite a petition signed by hundreds of thousands of people around the world urging Spanish authorities to spare her life.
The decision to kill the dog, named Excalibur, prompted international condemnation and protests from animal rights activists. Health authorities there said the animal posed a health risk and there was evidence dogs could carry the virus.
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