A number of hamsters and environmental samples from a pet store in Causeway Bay, Hong Kong, have tested positive for the new crown virus, and the pet store staff and customers have been confirmed, which is also the first case of hamsters infected with the new crown virus outside the laboratory in the world, which is not excluded from animals to humans.
On the 18th, the SAR Government strongly recommended that the public hand over the hamsters purchased on or after December 22 to the authorities for humane treatment.
Hong Kong's Agriculture, Fisheries and Conservation Department said the measures were not mandatory. Citizens can assess the risks and decide for themselves whether to hand them over. The Agriculture, Fisheries and Conservation Department also said that if it was handed over, the public would need to hand it over to the New Territories South Animal Management Centre and sign a consent form to abandon the animal. After signing, it means that the public can no longer take back the hamster, and any situation of the hamster after the Fisheries and Conservation Department will not be explained to the public.
Early in the morning, the owner of the hamster brought the hamster with the hamster and handed it to the department. The citizen said that he bought two hamsters on the 27th of last month and decided to hand them over to the authorities for the sake of his family's health.
Mr. Chan, a Hong Kong citizen:
We have explained to the children because of the problem of the virus. They also knew that the virus was terrible, so they didn't react much. It's just very reluctant, but in the end it has to be done. Because the children are still young, one is 6 years old and the other is 10 years old.
On the 18th, the HKSAR Government announced the implementation of the Hamster Eradication Order, which involves about 2,000 hamsters and some small mammals in Hong Kong. Hong Kong's Director of Fisheries and Conservation, Leung Siu-fai, said on a radio programme that hamsters have a stronger risk of infection than animals such as cats and dogs. After consideration and balance, the authorities have humanely destroyed two high-risk batches of hamsters, hoping to eliminate the hidden dangers of the epidemic as soon as possible.
Director of Hong Kong Fisheries and Conservation Department Leung Siu-fai:
Once a hamster is infected with the virus, it can be effectively transmitted to other animals, and the risk of transmission to humans is quite high. We try to find a batch, not to cut all the hamsters in Hong Kong in one size, and to hand them over to us for humane treatment, and try to draw a line out.
Hong Kong's Secretary for Food and Health, Chan Siu-chiu, said that the recovery of hamsters was aimed at minimizing the risk of infection, and pointed out that some citizens had called the relevant departments to hand over the hamsters. The relevant hamster organization said that by the early morning of the 19th, more than 120 inquiries had been received, and half of them planned to abandon it.
Source: Phoenix TV Cui Kejun Hong Kong report
Edit: Autumn fruit