'BBP working on long-term plan to stop deaths

Rithu Dravid | NT

Bengaluru: The Bannerghatta Biological Park (BBP) recently reported a significant increase in animal deaths, particularly among leopard cubs and deer.

The seven leopard cub deaths were due to an outbreak of the feline panleukopenia (FP) virus, a highly contagious viral disease, more virulent than the deadly Covid virus.

The FP virus affects cats and other feline species, causing a range of symptoms from gastrointestinal to neurological and is often fatal. However, 18 spotted deer out of the 37 have died due existing health issues that led to liver malfunction and not due to the deadly FP virus.

The herd of deer were hand reared at the St John’s Medical College and Hospital in the city and treated in isolation.

To curb the spread of this disease, the park officials have taken several measures such as vaccinating all the animals in the park, isolating the infected ones, and conducting regular surveys to check for any signs of the disease.

State Forest and Environment Minister, Eshwar Khandre who visited the park after the deaths instructed officials to take necessary precautionary measures to prevent infection of wild animals.

The minister has directed the zoo authorities to curb the spread. When News Trail contacted the minister he said, “Fortunately the timely intervention by the zoo authorities and veterinarians has curbed the spread of this deadly virus. They are also monitoring the animals closely for any signs of illness on a daily basis and isolated them. They have provided them with the necessary treatment till there is containment of the infection”.

Moreover, the park officials are also working on improving the overall health and immunity of the animals by providing them with a nutritious diet and adequate health care.

The minister added by saying, “The FP virus is a deadly and contagious virus. However the spread to humans is ruled out”.

Officials also state that the spread of the virus has been curtailed with necessary precautions and preventive measures. News Trail clarified with a few officials on this.

“These abandoned leopard cubs were rescued from the sugarcane fields and housed at the biological park. However, the cubs have died and the adult ones were immediately taken care of. It has been over 10 days with no further deaths reported”, said Subhash K Malkhede IFS, Principal Chief Conservator of Forest (PCCF), and Wildlife.

The park management is also working on developing a long-term strategy to prevent such outbreaks in the future. This includes increasing the surveillance and monitoring of the animals, investing in advanced medical facilities, and spreading awareness among the visitors to maintain hygiene and not to litter inside the park.

“The seven out of the eleven infected leopards that died were vaccinated animals. We have administered the booster dose to the cubs that have survived. The FP virus is a lethal virus and it’s specific to the cat family. There has been a huge outbreak of this deadly virus because of the monsoons. According to reports- a lot of domestic cats too have died due to this virus. The spread however was contracted from the domestic cats to the zoo family. This is the first time we have had an outbreak at Bannerghatta Park”, said Surya Sen IFS, Executive Director, Bannerghatta Biological Park.