Indian zoos on alert as US tiger gets infected

Vishwa.Mohan@timesgroup.com

New Delhi:07.04.2020

Following a report from the US where a tiger at the Bronx Zoo in New York tested positive for Covid-19, India on Monday kept its zoos, national parks, wildlife sanctuaries and tiger reserves on the “highest” alert, asking authorities to watch the big cats on a 24x7 basis for any abnormal behaviour and take “immediate preventive measures to stop the transmission and spread of the virus from human to animals and vice-versa”.

With 2,967 tigers, India is currently home to 75% of the global tiger population.

The Bronx Zoo incident is the first known case in the world where a human infected a big cat with Covid-19 and has sent alarm bells ringing across the globe. While there is growing concern among people who have pets, there is no evidence to suggest that pets are at risk.

Confirming the instance of a tiger being infected, the United States department of agriculture on Sunday advised that anyone sick with Covid-19 should restrict contact with animals, including pets, during their illness.

Reduce human-wildlife interface and restrict movement of people to national parks: Ministry

Taking cue from the US example and the USDA’s detailed note on it, India’s environment & forests ministry on Monday wrote to the chief wildlife wardens of all states/UTs asking them to “reduce human-wildlife interface and restrict the movement of people to national parks, sanctuaries and tiger reserves”.

The ministry, as precautionary measures, also advised wildlife/zoo authorities not to allow keepers, handlers and veterinary officials in the vicinity of animal enclosures “without safety gear, preferably personal protective equipment” and “isolate and quarantine” sick animals.

“Mammals like carnivores, especially cats, ferrets and primates to be carefully monitored and fortnightly samples of suspect cases to be sent to the designated animal health institutes to initiate Covid-19 testing while following all bio-containment and safety measures required to handle this high-risk pathogens as per national guidelines,” said S P Yadav, member secretary, Central Zoo Authority, in his note to all states and UTs.

The government also identified three animal health institutes of the Indian Council of Agricultural Research where Covid-19 testing would be initiated. These institutes are the National Institute of High Security Animal Disease in Bhopal, the National Research Centre on Equines in Hisar and the Centre for Animal Disease Research and Diagnostic, IVRI, Izatnagar, Bareilly.

Referring to the Bronx Zoo case, the National Tiger Conservation Authority, in its separate advisories, asked all tiger reserves states to gear up all frontline staff and veterinary officials to detect the disease and prevent any spread in tigers in the wild.

“Tigers may be observed for symptoms consistent with Covid-19, such as respiratory signs of nasal discharge, coughing and laboured breathing, through direct observation to the extent possible besides through camera trap images for visible symptoms,” said Vaibhav C Mathur, assistant inspector general of forests, NTCA, in his note to states.

The USDA, in its statement on the Bronx Zoo case, said that the samples from the infected tiger were taken and tested after several lions and tigers at the zoo showed symptoms of respiratory illness.

It said, “Public health officials believe these large cats became sick after being exposed to a zoo employee who was actively shedding virus.”

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