There's been a lot of notice that the South Koreans are responding to two outbreaks of bird flu (H5N1) not only with the culling of poultry by the hundreds of thousands, something that has become quite routine, now, but also the slaughter of neighboring dogs and pigs. Pigs are a well known host for influenza and dogs are susceptible to several subtypes, although there have been only a few reports of infection with H5N1. The South Koreans insist that dogs have also been killed elsewhere but the fact not publicized. I don't know if it is true or not. The big news in the West is killing the dogs, beloved pets and quasi-family members in the US, UK and Europe. But the Koreans fret more about the loss of their pigs:
"Dogs are good for keeping us not bored. But pigs -- it costs us a lot to buy those pigs," said the 66-year-old Im, who lives next to the chicken farm where a second outbreak of bird flu was confirmed Tuesday, near the site of an earlier outbreak last week in Iksan, about 250 kilometers (155 miles) south of Seoul."We, people in rural areas, depend on pigs and cows for our living," Im said. (CNN)
The dogs here are in rural areas where they are decidedly not kept as pets. That would be an unaffordable luxury. These dogs are livestock:
Park Kyung-hee, an official at Iksan city hall, said Wednesday 426 pigs and four dogs have so far been killed along with 127,200 chickens and 6.8 million eggs.
She has said nearly 700 dogs -- bred on farms for consumption -- were to be killed, but said Wednesday it was unclear when the slaughter would take place, with efforts focused on destroying more susceptible animals like poultry and pigs for now.
Park said the killing of all animals was in accordance with national guidelines, adding that stray cats and mice will also be killed.
The killing of livestock is not a routine control measure for bird flu, Korean claims to the contrary. The problem, as we see it, is that there has been far too little systematic investigation of other reservoirs for H5N1. It may turn out that all of dogs, cats, mice and swine are important reservoirs, and if so, we'd best find out and the sooner the better. Or maybe none of them are. Whether the Korean measures are warranted or not is unknown at the moment, an issue independent of feelings about the mass killing of dogs. We remind the injured Western sensibilities that in many other countries (e.g., Indonesia), birds occupy a similar place as do cats and dogs in the US, UK and Europe as companion animals (aka, pets).
The Reveres happen to be dog lovers and dog owners, but the public health question is where this virus resides in the natural world. We say again, we know too little about this. A systematic survey of other species in poultry infected areas is an urgent order of business.
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Reveres: It would make sense to me to cull the dogs if they are raised for meat. I read in other articles that the dog meat is a delicacy in Korea. They are not pets. I am betting the dogs are not being fed Puppy Chow.
Perhaps the problem is that the dogs and pigs were fed chicken parts and waste, just as pond fish are in other countries. We have discussed this in other posts. Cats, feral or otherwise, and the mice, would have free range over the property.
I would agree with you that the study of other species would be in order. Americans have close and intense contact with their pets....recall the monkeypox incident with rabbits, gambian rats and prairie dogs. Pets all.
Love,
Library Lady
The domestication of dogs and cats was not an interesting hobby but an absolute necessity to ancient humans.
Those who suggest a culling of these species might want to consider the unintended consequences.
Bats were the hidden mammalian reservoir for Nipah virus and SARS. Bats may also be the reservoir for H5N1 and other recently emerging influenza subtypes...
...but it is also possible and likely that rats and mice also could be...a or the hidden reservoir.
I hope they save some animals for testing after they are through culling.
How tough would it be to freeze them and ship them for detailed lab study?
Opportunity is knocking loudly. I hope the WHO will answer the door.
At Fluwiki, we've posted a piece from the Indonesian Liputan6 TV News service with further details on the South Korean culls: (www.newfluwiki2.com)
"The ministry of Livestock Breeding and South Korean Agriculture fast acted in a planned manner destroyed 667 dogs and the pig in Iksan. Because, according to Kim Chang -- the official in the South Korean Ministry -- the virus H5N1 only did not infect the poultry, but also the dog, the cat, the goat as well as the pig." http://tinyurl.com/yd29sj
It is unclear whether the Korean official was speaking to the fact that these mammals may become infected with H5N1 (hypothetically) or whether the offiical was saying that these animals have been found to be infected with H5N1 locally.
Earl E, good idea and does it make sense to take it even further...
How about picking one of the farms, not killing anything on it, quarantine it and continue running it as one would normally do but carefully monitoring the spread of the disease (if any).
How much would it cost to relocate the family(s) on one farm and have experts camp out around the place taking samples frequently and monitoring as many interactions as possible (birds, rats, strays, etc). Or maybe this wacky idea is just way too dangerous.
But it seems like every time the virus appears somewhere we slash and burn and don't really seem to get all that much out of it.
The virus is still spreading and doing so faster than we accumulate knowledge about it, maybe its time for something completely different.