Hong Kong says controversial hamster cull is complete and pet shops can resume sales

Hong Kong authorities ordered mass culling of nearly 2,000 hamsters amid Covid fears

Authorities in Hong Kong have allowed pet stores that sold hamsters to resume operations after nearly 2,000 hamsters were culled amid fears of the spread of the coronavirus from the animals.

In a press release, Hong Kong’s agriculture, fisheries and conservation department (AFCD) said on Saturday that it has “taken 1,134 samples from animals other than hamsters including rabbits, chinchillas and others; and 1,124 environmental swabs from all the concerned pet shops for the Covid-19 virus test”.

“Test results of all the animal samples are confirmed negative.”

The AFCD also said that the Little Boss pet shop, where the cases emerged “has not yet been thoroughly disinfected and cleaned.”

Eleven hamsters at the shop tested positive for the disease earlier this month, prompting authorities to cull nearly 2,000 hamsters, in a move that has been widely criticised.

A worker at the store as well as a 67-year-old customer had also tested positive.

Authorities had also asked pet owners who had bought hamsters in the last four weeks to hand over their pets and barred pet shops from selling hamsters.

On Saturday, the AFCD while allowing pet shops selling hamsters to resume business, said that three shops had not passed the virus test while a fourth is still being probed by the health department.

“All the other concerned pet shops, on the other hand, have been thoroughly disinfected and cleaned and the environmental swabs collected from these shops have all passed the COVID-19 virus test. Therefore, the department has allowed these pet shops, other than the five mentioned above, to resume business from tomorrow,” the release said.

The government will also set up a surveillance system to monitor these pet shops.

On Friday, the government had announced compensation to pet shops trading in hamsters, including a one-off payment of up to HK$30,000 (US$3,850).

The government said that the move was a bid “to provide financial relief to pet shops” whose business were affected by its anti-epidemic measures.