The guidance from the UKHSA and other health authorities recommends that pet guinea pigs, rats, mice and other rodents should be removed from the household of someone infected with monkeypox for 21 days, and be tested for the disease.

There are thought to be two million households in the UK with a pet rodent of some kind, according to sales data.

Other pets like dogs and cats should be placed under household isolation with regular vet checks to "ensure no clinical signs are observed".

Related advice from the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) says that "where possible" the patient should avoid preparing food or grooming their pet if this can be done by someone else in the household.

England's chief veterinary officer Christine Middlemiss said: "No cases of monkeypox have ever been suspected or reported in pets in the UK and the risk remains low.

"We will continue to monitor the situation closely and work with veterinary and public health colleagues, both in the UK and across the world, to manage the animal health associated risks with monkeypox."

Separate advice published by the European Centre for Disease Control (ECDC) this week said that rodent pets belonging to monkeypox patients should "ideally" be isolated in monitored facilities and tested for the disease before their quarantine period ends.

The animals should only be put down as a last resort in situations where isolation is not feasible, the document said.

Larger pets, such as dogs, could quarantine at home with regular checks on their health status.