A tiger in New York city has become the first animal on the planet to display symptoms after testing positive for the novel coronavirus, according to a news release from the Wildlife Conservation Society's Bronx Zoo. All zoos in India have been asked to remain on high alert and monitor animals for any abnormal behaviour, after a tiger at the Bronx Zoo in New York tested positive for the coronavirus disease (Covid-19).
Zoos have also been asked to send samples of suspect animals to animal health institutes to initiate Covid-19 testing. The Central Zoo Authority of India (CZAI), the apex body for all zoos in India, issued an advisory in this regard on Monday. It came after a four-year-old female Malayan tiger named Nadia tested positive for the coronavirus at the Bronx Zoo, in what is believed to be the first known infection in an animal in the US or a tiger anywhere.
Nadia - and six other tigers and lions that have also fallen ill - are believed to have been infected by a zoo employee who wasn’t yet showing symptoms. The first animal started showing symptoms March 27, and all are doing well and expected to recover. There are around 160 recognised zoos in India with more than 56,800 captive animals. All zoos are presently closed because of the 21-day, nationwide lockdown that began on Match 25.
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