Advocate Mehul Bansal, Jadetimes News
Adv. M. Bansal is an Advocate and a Jadetimes News Reporter covering legal news
A new outbreak of bird flu killed dozens of tigers in southern Vietnam, including 47 tigers, three lions, and a panther, due to the fatal H5N1 virus. The virus attacked relatively fast and lethally at My Quynh Safari and Vuon Xoai Zoo when the infected animals became weak and stopped eating, dying a couple of days later. Park officials suspected that the outbreak started when the tigers were fed raw chicken obtained from neighboring farms, which may have been carrying the virus. Samples confirmed the presence of H5N1, a virus known to kill animals ranging well beyond birds.
The last few years saw the virus threaten globally, spreading not only to other species such as cats and dogs but even to marine mammals from poultry. In Vietnam, the dead animals' bodies, including tiger cubs, were incinerated, and 20 surviving tigers were quarantined closely. Staff caring for the animals tested negative for the virus, but this incident has raised alarms about zoonotic risks in captivity.
The deaths of the birds were deemed preventable by PETA. More threat to animal welfare lies in housing wild animals in captive settings; it also offers huge threats to human health, which could potentially lead to disease outbreaks, such as bird flu, said experts who are closely watching the outbreak- causing threats to the possibility of more such outbreaks, according to experts who have already reported similar cases worldwide.
