Virus claims 23 tigers
2004-10-19 08:42
Bangkok - A Thai tiger zoo housing hundreds of the big cats was shut down on Tuesday after preliminary bird flu tests revealed 23 tigers had likely died of the virus and another 30 had fallen ill.
The head of Thailand's bird flu taskforce, deputy prime minister Chaturon Chaisang, said the Sri Racha Tiger Zoo's cats most likely contracted bird flu after being fed raw chickens.
"Initial test results revealed 19 tigers may have died from bird flu virus and more tiger deaths this morning brought the total number to 23," Chaturon told reporters, adding "the zoo has now been closed for tourists."
The deputy premier said authorities were waiting for the results of a second round of conclusive tests before confirming bird flu in the tigers.
The kingdom's Livestock Development Department said officials were working to quarantine tigers at the eastern Chonburi province zoo, which houses some 400 of the feline predators.
"Officials have already separated sick tigers and sprayed germ killers at Sri Racha Tiger Zoo, which will be closed indefinitely until the all-clear is given," said the department's director general Yukol Limlamthong.
He said the first tiger died on October 14, and since then a total of 53 cats have tested positive to bird flu in first-round tests.
The World Health Organisation said last month it was taking seriously a scientific report that domestic cats could contract bird flu and pass it on to humans after Dutch researchers experimentally infected six European shorthair cats with the H5N1 virus.
Six Asian nations have reported a resurgence of the virus prompting the culling of millions of birds amid fears that the disease has become endemic in the region.
Thai officials late last month confirmed the country's first probable case of human-to-human infection of bird flu following the deaths of a mother and daughter, which took the year's toll to at least 11 in the kingdom. At least 19 people have also died in Vietnam.
The announcement raised fears that the bird flu virus could mutate into a highly contagious form and trigger a global human flu pandemic although officials said it appeared to be an isolated case.
A mutated bird flu outbreak was blamed for the deaths of as many as 40 million people worldwide in 1918.
Thailand will host a regional conference on bird flu next month to assess how best to stem the spread of the virus.