At least 72 tigers have died in recent weeks at a private zoo in northern Thailand. According to local authorities, the cause was a deadly virus and a bacterial infection. This was reported by Yahoo, according to UNN.
Details
The provincial livestock department in Chiang Mai reported that testing confirmed the presence of a highly infectious canine distemper virus, as well as bacteria affecting the animals' respiratory system.
When tigers get sick, it's harder to detect than in animals like cats or dogs. By the time we realized they were sick, it was already too late.
According to the publication, it was not possible to get a comment from the administration of the "Tiger Kingdom" park, where the deaths occurred.
The park's website advertises the opportunity for visitors to touch and take photos with tigers. At the same time, animal rights organizations criticize the conditions in which the animals are kept.
These tigers died as they lived - in squalor, captivity, and fear. If tourists stayed away, these places would quickly become unprofitable, and such tragedies would happen much less often.
Recall
In Asia, outbreaks of the highly fatal Nipah virus have been recorded. Experts note that the virus is transmitted from bats to animals, and then to humans through contact.