Hong Kong pet shop owners cry foul over Covid-19 hamster cull, say closures will hurt business
- The backlash came swiftly after health minister issued an order on Tuesday to euthanise the tiny mammals over fears of animal-to-human Covid-19 transmission
- Angela Chan, vice-president of Hong Kong Pet Trade Association Limited, says the policy will immediately hurt the pet trade
Hong Kong’s pet shop owners have hit out at a government decision to cull hamsters and temporarily ban imports of small animals over the possible transmission of Covid-19 from them to humans, saying the move will hurt their businesses.
Angela Chan, vice-president of the non-profit Hong Kong Pet Trade Association Limited, said on Wednesday that the policy would immediately hurt the pet trade and discourage people from buying and keeping hamsters in the long run.
She said the association was in contact with authorities on compensation matters.
“With the rising number of [pet] abandonments and the suspension of animal imports, the loss will be huge,” Chan said.
The backlash from pet shop owners came swiftly after health minister Sophia Chan Siu-chee issued the cull order on Tuesday, citing evidence of the first potential animal-to-human transmission of Covid-19 in the city at a local pet shop.