AMID social media concern that 72 tigers that died at a sanctuary in Chiang Mai last week could have caught avian influenza, or bird flu, two ministries this afternoon (Feb. 24) confirmed that this virus was absent from both tiger and chicken carcasses and urged the public to have confidence in the test results.
Public Health Minister Pattana Promphat and Deputy Agriculture and Cooperatives Minister Amin Mayusoh said that the Livestock Development Department unit in Chiang Mai had inspected the ailing tigers and implemented initial emergency measures. They were found to have respiratory abnormalities and weak breathing.
An RT-PCR test was conducted and no genetic material of avian influenza virus was found. However, three to four days later, further tests found genetic material of Mycoplasma species in the samples, along with larvae of canine distemper in the organs of deceased tigers. Nevertheless, no zoonotic transmission of the disease (from animals to humans) was detected.
Pattana said canine distemper can be transmitted from dogs to tigers and is preventable with vaccines. Tigers kept in cages, lacking proper health care, and experiencing stress are more susceptible to disease and infection.
In wild animals, symptoms are often only seen when the disease is severe, making treatment ineffective and leading to death. The deceased tiger carcasses were disposed of using standard burial methods to prevent further spread. Currently, there is no outbreak of the disease, and no further tiger deaths have occurred.
“The Ministry of Agriculture and Cooperatives is not complacent about this incident, even though avian influenza was not found,” Amin said.
“We have assigned officials from the Livestock Development Department to closely monitor the situation in the area. In addition, we are clearly separating tigers with and without symptoms. If any tiger has severe symptoms that cannot be cured, we will take decisive action.”
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An uninfected tiger, above, and some that died, Front Page. Above photo – Amarin TV, Front Page photo – Thai Rath
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Ministry checking whether 72 tigers died of bird flu
