Thailand, COVID-19 and the wildlife trade

[snoop1130]

Thailand, COVID-19 and the wildlife trade

by Expat Life

 

 

From gateway to guardian by Steven R. Galster Freeland

 

COVID-19 was a biological bomb. Its impact has been worse than any terrorist act or natural disaster in the last 100 years. The last pandemic that was more damaging than COVID-19 was the Spanish flu, which infected a third of the world’s population and killed up to 50 million people. We are very lucky this time.

 

What caused COVID-19, and how can we avert another, even worse catastrophe?  Was it a bat from a lab? A pangolin from the market in Wuhan? Or both?

 

It actually does not matter. What does matter is what scientists do agree on: COVID-19 jumped from a wild animal to a person. That means it is a zoonotic disease – one that spread to pandemic proportions. Like several others have in the past that we all know about: HIV, Ebola, SARS, H5N1, MERS. They all jumped from wild animals, sometimes going straight to a person, sometimes via a domestic animal, like a pig, cow, camel, chickens, or other critters.

 

Zoonotic outbreaks are happening more frequently, and they are getting stronger. Why?  The main 2 reasons:

 

• First: Rising commercial wildlife trade, which brings wild animals into closer contact with people.
•  
• Second: Destruction of wild habitat, which forces wild animals into human territory. Usually, this destruction of wild habitat is being done to make more space for intensive, industrial farming.

 

What about a cure?

 

The world is currently spending enormous effort and funds trying to create a vaccine. We also see costly stimulus and recovery packages offered by governments to put people and economies back on their feet. But these responses amount to expensive BAND-AID’s that will need frequent changing  – because a new vaccine will likely not work against the next outbreak. Each virus strain is unique.  Otherwise, we would be inoculating people now with the vaccine used for SARS (aka COVID-02).  We will then have to start all over again.

 

The only true, lasting vaccine is to treat the root cause of the pandemic: eliminating commercial trade in wild animals; protecting wild habitat; and promoting compassionate, sustainable farming.  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-rVD9dkT-yc Protect nature and nature will protect us.  

 

Thailand’s response to COVID-19 has been remarkably good overall. Thailand boasts one of the lowest rates of COVID-19 transmission and deaths in the world. But Thailand has left one door open to another potential bomb occurring right here: its wildlife trade.

 

Thailand is  global gateway for commercial wildlife trade. Wild animals are still being transported through the country, legally and illegally. And the virus has demonstrated that it does not discriminate between legal and trafficked animals. One example: the recent legal importation of zebras from Africa that brought with them midges that infected and killed nearly 600 horses in Thailand with something called African Horse Sickness. Exotic wild animals from around the world – and from Thai commercial wildlife farms – are still being sold in the country, including at the animal section of Chatuchak market, as well as on various online platforms. One can purchase almost any exotic species from every corner of the globe in Thailand, ranging from zebras to giraffes, orang utans, chimpanzees, tigers, African gray parrots, Scarlet Macaws, Capybaras (the world’s largest rodent), iguanas, various turtles, tortoises, snakes, pangolins, and many more.

 

Full Story: https://expatlifeinthailand.com/lifestyle/thailand-covid-19-and-the-wildlife-trade/

 

-- © Copyright Expat Life in Thailand 2020-12-11

 

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[nobodysfriend]

19 hours ago, snoop1130 said:

because a new vaccine will likely not work against the next outbreak. Each virus strain is unique.

 

Very true and scaring as new vaccines would need to be found for every substantially different strain .

 

19 hours ago, snoop1130 said:

But Thailand has left one door open to another potential bomb occurring right here: its wildlife trade.

 

The wildlife trade is at the origin of the virus . That is why the virus appeared .

 

 

19 hours ago, snoop1130 said:

Wild animals are still being transported through the country, legally and illegally. And the virus has demonstrated that it does not discriminate between legal and trafficked animals.

 

 To prevent further viruses to appear and damage the quality of people's life , Wildlife trade has to be regulated to ensure that the animals are treated species appropriate . Or , even better , made illegal .

 

This virus appeared to teach mankind a lesson .

That lesson is to treat every living thing with RESPECT .

Because everything is connected .

Every action provokes a reaction .

That reaction is the virus .