Hong Kong set to end ban on hamster imports
The Hong Kong Agriculture, Fisheries and Conservation Department intends to lift the import ban in mid-January.
Hong Kong authorities are set to lift a year-long ban on the import of hamsters amid a relaxation of COVID-19 restrictions in the city.
Hamster importations were banned in Hong Kong last year after a worker at the Little Boss pet shop tested positive for the Delta variant of the virus. Tests conducted by authorities on the animals in the shop revealed that 11 hamsters imported from the Netherlands were infected.
Owing to the zero-tolerance COVID policy in China, Hong Kong subsequently ordered the culling of some 2,000 hamsters, prompting a backlash from animal rights campaigners and pet owners against the measures.
Speaking to BBC News, a spokesperson from the Hong Kong Agriculture, Fisheries and Conservation Department (AFCD) said it intends to lift the import ban in mid-January.
"Our staff will arrange to collect samples from hamsters and other small mammals for Covid-19 testing. They can only be sold if the test results are negative," the spokesperson said.
A spokesperson from the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals in Hong Kong added: "If such imports are to resume, the hamsters need to be handled with consideration [and] given the best care possible during transport and quarantine.”
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