A tragedy has occurred in northern Thailand: within a short period, 72 tigers held in captivity died due to an aggressive infection. The country's authorities are urgently taking measures, conducting disinfection of the enclosures and preparing vaccinations for the surviving individuals to stop the spread of the disease.
The causes of the predators' deaths remain unclear and are causing disputes. The regional livestock management authority in Chiang Mai claims that the tigers were infected with the canine distemper virus, and veterinarians have also identified mycoplasma as a secondary infection. At the same time, Somchuan Ratanamungklanont, the director of the Livestock Development Department under the Ministry of Agriculture of Thailand, reported that the main culprit for the animals' deaths is feline panleukopenia.
The situation is complicated by the peculiarities of working with wild animals. As Ratanamungklanont noted, the approach to treating tigers is fundamentally different from caring for domestic pets, which are in constant contact with humans. In domestic animals, the symptoms of the disease manifest more quickly, allowing for early treatment. In tigers, however, the disease is often detected too late, when emergency assistance is already required.
The epicenter of the outbreak has been the mountainous areas of Mae Rim and Mae Taeng in Chiang Mai province, where the first signs of illness in the animals were noticed on February 8. Due to this situation, the popular tourist center Tiger Kingdom Chiang Mai, known for allowing visitors to interact with tigers and take photos with them, has temporarily closed. Kritsayam Kongsatri, head of the wildlife conservation office in Chiang Mai, described the current loss as "an extremely unusual event."
There have been cases in the region's history related to dangerous viruses. For instance, in southern Vietnam, from August to October 2024, 47 tigers and three leopards died from avian influenza. In Thailand, in 2004, there was an even larger outbreak at the Sriracha Zoo: 147 tigers out of 441 either died or were euthanized, with raw chicken carcasses used to feed the animals being the main source of infection at that time.
Currently, veterinary services continue their efforts to identify the exact pathogen of the ongoing epidemic.
Source: theguardian.com
