Thai zoo pandas quarantined to avoid bird flu
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BANGKOK, Thailand (Reuters) -- A Thai zoo has quarantined its pair of pandas, one of the world's most endangered animals and its biggest draw, to cut the risk of them catching the highly infectious bird flu which killed a rare clouded leopard.
"We have told zoo workers to keep making noise and waving their hands to scare wild birds away," said Tanapattana Ponpamorn of the Chiang Mai zoo, 435 miles north of Bangkok as migrating birds are believed to spread the deadly H5N1 virus.
"Since the bird flu outbreak, we have not allowed the pandas to come out of their shelter and roam around their yard to keep them away from wild birds," the zoo director said a day after Thailand announced the death of the clouded leopard.
"We have to take care of the pandas the best we can as they are considered representative of the close friendship between China and Thailand," Tanapattana said of the only pandas in Thailand.
Environment Minister Prapat Panyachatraksa said the leopard died at Kaokiew Zoo, 40 miles east of Bangkok, in what was believed to have been the first death of a big cat from the H5N1 virus which has killed 14 Vietnamese and six Thais.
A tiger at the zoo was recovering from the same deadly virus which has spread to eight Asian countries.
The pandas, three-year-old Chuang Chuang and two-year-old Lin Hui, had been kept inside for a month, Tanapattana said.
The pair arrived from China in October and have attracted huge crowds since they went on display the following month, but now they are visible only through the glass walls of their compound.
Their food, largely bamboo, was cleaned carefully to ensure it was free of the virus, which has struck most areas of Thailand, Tanapattana said.
"We have added nutritious carrot, apple and specially-made Chinese biscuits to their menu," and visitors have to clean their shoes with antiseptic before entering the park as an additional precaution, he added.
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Reuters. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
