The government recently announced the implementation of the “Rat Control Order” to cull hamsters and small animals, which has drawn widespread criticism from the community. As some volunteers were worried regarding the safety of the hamsters, they voluntarily collected hamsters from the public outside the New Territories South Animal Management Centre of the Agriculture, Fisheries and Conservation Department the day before yesterday (20th). Liang Zhaohui, director of the Agriculture, Fisheries and Conservation Department, said on a radio program this morning (22nd) that referring to epidemiological studies, it is a common practice to humanely destroy animals with high contagion.
He said that considering the incubation period of the new coronavirus, even if the animal’s virus test is negative, it does not mean that it does not carry the virus. Since the authorities did not have appropriate measures to repeatedly test the animals, they decided to humanely destroy the same batch of hamsters.
Xu Shuchang, chair professor of the Department of Respiratory System of CUHK, who is also a government expert consultant, said that the hamster samples involved were found to be related to the Delta variant virus. Since the virus has never appeared in Hong Kong, he believes that there is a greater chance of importing from overseas, and hamsters also have There is a greater risk of transmission, and the pet shop clerk involved has infected other people following being infected. Therefore, the public is urged to hand over the hamster for the authorities to deal with.
“Hong Kong Epidemic Panic” page:http://hk.on.cc/fea/hkdisease
