A highly contagious virus is believed to have killed 72 captive tigers in northern Thailand this month, as authorities race to contain the outbreak.
Teams are urgently disinfecting enclosures and preparing to vaccinate surviving animals.
The exact cause of death is unclear. The government’s Region 5 Livestock Office for Chiang Mai said in a statement that the animals were infected with canine distemper virus, and veterinarians also identified Mycoplasma bacteria as a secondary infection.
But earlier, Somchuan Rattanamungklanon, director-general of the Department of Animal Husbandry at the Thai Ministry of Agriculture, told Thai outlet Matichon that the tigers were infected with feline panleucopenia.
“Treating sick tigers is very different from treating dogs and cats. Dogs and cats live in close proximity to us, so when they show symptoms, we can immediately respond and provide treatment. However, tigers do not live in close proximity to humans. By the time we notice something is wrong, the illness may already be advanced,” he said.
The outbreak affected two districts in Chiang Mai: the Mae Rim and Mae Thang mountain areas. Media reported that dozens of tigers started showing signs of illness on February 8.
Tiger Kingdom Chiang Mai has been temporarily closed since the deaths. The zoo, which allows visitors to “hug, touch and take pictures of the tigers”, is a popular tourist attraction.
Kritsyarm Kongsatri, director of the wildlife conservation office in Chiang Mai, told Thai media that the death toll was “very unusual”.
In other tiger deaths, bird flu in southern Vietnam killed 47, including three leopards, between August and October 2024.
In October 2004, an outbreak of bird flu occurred at the Sriracha Tiger Zoo in Chonburi Province, eastern Thailand. A total of 147 of the zoo’s 441 tigers have either died or been euthanized to prevent the spread to other animals. Fresh chicken carcasses fed to animals have been suggested as the most likely source of infection.
Tiger Kingdom Chiang Mai could not immediately be reached for comment.
