The new crown pneumonia has been ravaging the world for more than 2 years, but the Hong Kong government has been criticized for its messy anti-epidemic work. Recently, it was revealed that 11 hamsters were infected with the new crown virus in Little Boss, a pet shop in Causeway Bay. A case of a hamster infecting a human with the Delta variant. The Hong Kong government has also implemented a “rodent eradication order”. It is estimated that about 2,000 hamsters and some small mammals in Hong Kong will be humanely destroyed. At the same time, it has ordered all pet shops selling hamsters in Hong Kong to suspend business, and suspend the import of small mammals including hamsters. animal.
Yuan Guoyong, a government expert advisor and chair professor of the Department of Microbiology of the University of Hong Kong, said on a radio program this morning (19th) that environmental samples from the storefront and warehouse of the pet store where customers were infected have been tested positive for the new crown virus, and it is believed that hamsters There has been a hidden transmission chain between them, and the amount of virus is large enough to infect humans. In order to avoid the expansion of the epidemic, humane destruction of all hamsters is the only option. He also pointed out that the vaccination rate in Hong Kong is low. According to past epidemic experience, as long as one case flows into the community to cause an epidemic, there is a chance that hundreds of elderly people will die from the disease. Therefore, a choice must be made between animal and human life.
Xu Shuchang, chair professor of the Department of Respiratory System of CUHK, who is also an expert consultant to the government, said that there is a high chance that hamsters will transmit the virus to humans. It is estimated that the batch of hamsters imported by the pet store on December 22 last year had already carried the virus before the Netherlands arrived in Hong Kong. , Contaminated warehouses and pet stores after arriving in Hong Kong, and confirmed that the clerk had the opportunity to be infected after being exposed to droplets and feces of hamsters with the virus.