Bird Flu Killed 147 Thai Tigers - Update

23 Tigers and a clouded leopard might have fallen victims of the bird flu virus. They fear that the virus could mutate with a human flu virus and cause a worldwide disaster.

From Bird flu may have killed Thai tigers

The bird flu epidemic that has killed 31 people in southeast Asia this year may also have killed 23 tigers at a zoo in eastern Thailand, a cabinet minister says.

"I've received a report this morning that 23 tigers have died and some others have been sick," Deputy Prime Minister Chaturon Chaisang told reporters on Tuesday.

"Their preliminary symptoms showed they might have caught bird flu," said Chaturon, who is in charge of the Thai battle against bird flu.

A clouded leopard died in similar fashion at a Thai zoo earlier this year and scientific studies have shown since that cats can be infected with avian flu, which means pets could spread the disease.

The underlying fear of the bird flu epidemic, which swept through much of Asia early this year, is that the H5N1 avian flu virus could get into an animal that can also host a human flu virus, most likely a pig.

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Update:
147 tigers killed in Thailand to contain bird flu
See last post.







[edit on 2004/11/4 by Hellmutt]

I have a friend who is planning on going to Vietnam, Cambodia and Thailand in November for a few weeks. However this avian flu is causing her to have serious second thoughts about making the trip. She says there is no cure for it, and it has a very high mortality rate. In any event, if she goes she will be sticking with purely vegetables for dining and some fish as well.

BBC: Bird flu tigers facing mass cull

"Health officials in Thailand are to cull dozens of tigers at a private zoo to stem an outbreak of bird flu among the big cats. As many as 80 could be killed after seven tigers died, raising the death toll at the Sriracha Tiger Zoo to 30.

Officials made the decision to cull the tigers in an effort to stop the zoo becoming "a reservoir for the disease".

About 40 tigers are very sick. The tigers that are very sick can't be cured anyway, so they are going to die. If they are kept alive, they'll be carriers"

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From Xinhuanet: 147 tigers killed in Thailand to contain bird flu

The Thai government killed 147 tigers during last month's operation to wipe out the bird flu virus, the Thai News Agency reported Thursday.

According to the report, the tigers were killed at the Sri Racha Tiger Zoo where several tigers died from bird flu after being fed raw chicken.

The government also killed more than 1.5 million chickens in the operation, the report said.