An image shared on Facebook more than 1,600 times claims a vaccine against the novel coronavirus already exists for dogs.

Verdict: False

The pictured vaccine is for a different coronavirus that affects dogs. No vaccine against the novel coronavirus is currently available.

Fact Check:

The viral post uses the image of a canine coronavirus vaccine to suggest that the novel 2019 coronavirus isn’t new. It also speculates about the existence of a human vaccine against COVID-19, the disease caused by the novel coronavirus.

“Can anyone explain to me why they made a Corona virus vaccine a year ago for K9s but are acting like this shit is a new virus that came from China just recently?” reads the post. “If they have a vaccine for dogs, don’t u think they wud have one for humans too? Wtf is the government tryin to pull on us really?”

The pictured vaccine, however, actually prevents a coronavirus that causes gastrointestinal issues in dogs. It only works for that canine virus and is “not effective for the prevention of COVID-19,” according to the VCA Hospital website.

Canine coronavirus is part of the same family of viruses as the novel human coronavirus but is distinct from it. The novel coronavirus had not been previously identified before emerging in China in December, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

The World Health Organization (WHO) website states that no vaccine to prevent COVID-19 is currently available. (RELATED: Viral Image Falsely Claims The Novel Coronavirus Is ‘Simply The Common Cold’)

“So far WHO has received applications for review and approval of 40 diagnostic tests, 20 vaccines are in development and many clinical trials of therapeutics are underway,” WHO spokesman Tarik Jasarevic told the Daily Caller in an email. “We expect the first results in a few weeks.”