HONG KONG — Authorities in Hong Kong said Tuesday they plan to kill about 2,000 small animals after hamsters tested positive for COVID-19 at a pet store.
An employee at the pet store also tested positive for the delta variant, as did several hamsters that were imported from the Netherlands, The Associated Press reported.
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Authorities in Hong Kong also said sales of hamsters and imports of small animals will be stopped, and customers who bought hamsters in the city since Dec. 22 will be subject to mandatory testing, the AP reported.
Authorities have also warned people not to kiss pets. Leung Sui-fai Leung, director of the Agriculture, Fisheries and Conservation Department said, “Pet owners should keep a good hygiene practice, including washing hands after touching the animals, handling their food or other items, and avoid kissing the animals,” Reuters reported.
The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has said animals do not appear to play a significant role in the spread of COVID-19, but Hong Kong authorities said they are not ruling out the potential for transmission between humans and animals, the AP reported.
Hong Kong has a “zero-Covid” strategy that focuses on eliminating the disease, which requires the animals to be killed, the BBC reported. Hong Kong authorities have also set up a telephone “hamster hotline” for questions, the network reported.
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