No remedy for pets: Hong Kong to kill 2,000 animals after hamsters get Covid-19

Hong Kong authorities mentioned Tuesday that they may kill about 2,000 small animals, together with hamsters, after a number of examined optimistic for the coronavirus at a pet retailer the place an worker was additionally contaminated.

The metropolis will even cease the sale of hamsters and the import of small mammals, in line with officers from the Agriculture, Fisheries and Conservation Department. The pet store worker examined optimistic for the delta variant on Monday, and several other hamsters imported from the Netherlands on the retailer examined optimistic as nicely.According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, animals don’t seem to play a big function in spreading the coronavirus. But Hong Kong authorities mentioned they don’t seem to be ruling out transmission between animals and people.“We cannot exclude the possibility that the shopkeeper was in fact actually infected from the hamsters,” mentioned Edwin Tsui, a controller on the Centre for Health Protection.“If you own a hamster, you should keep your hamsters at home, do not take them out,” division director Leung Siu-fai mentioned at a information convention. “All pet owners should observe good personal hygiene, and after you have been in contact with animals and their food, you should wash your hands.”“Do not kiss your pets,” he added.As a precautionary measure, prospects who bought hamsters from the shop after Jan. 7 will probably be traced and be topic to necessary quarantine and should hand over their hamsters to authorities to be put down, officers mentioned.They mentioned all pet shops in Hong Kong should cease promoting hamsters and that about 2,000 small mammals, together with hamsters and chinchillas, will probably be killed in a humane method.Customers who purchased hamsters in Hong Kong from Dec. 22 will probably be topic to necessary testing and are urged not contact others till their checks have returned unfavorable. If their hamsters take a look at optimistic, they are going to be topic to quarantine.Hong Kong’s Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals mentioned it was “shocked and concerned” by the choice to kill the animals, and urged the federal government to not “take any drastic action before reviewing its approach.”Hong Kong has been grappling with a neighborhood omicron outbreak traced to a number of Cathay Pacific crew members who dined at bars and eating places throughout town earlier than testing optimistic for the omicron variant.The authorities introduced late Monday that two former flight attendants have been arrested for leaving their houses throughout quarantine and later being confirmed to have coronavirus infections. It didn’t establish their employer, however mentioned the 2 arrived from the U.S. on Dec. 24 and 25 and “conducted unnecessary activities” whereas beneath medical surveillance.The arrests got here after Cathay Pacific mentioned it had fired two crew members for breaching coronavirus protocols. It beforehand apologized and known as their actions “extremely disappointing.” The firm needed to reduce on flights — each passenger and cargo — in January due to tightened virus curbs.The two have been launched on bail and could have their case heard in court docket on Feb. 9. If convicted of violating anti-epidemic laws, they may resist six months’ imprisonment and a superb of as much as 5,000 Hong Kong {dollars} ($642).Previously in Hong Kong, some air and sea crew members might isolate at house beneath quarantine exemptions. Regulations had been tightened on Dec. 31 to require crew members to isolate in a chosen quarantine lodge for a few week.