Hong Kong will lift a ban on the import of hamsters for sale in the middle of this month, a year after the city ordered the cull of the furry mammals and closed all pet shops selling them to eradicate the Covid-19 virus.
Imported hamsters must still test negative for Covid before they are available for sale, as studies have found they are susceptible to the virus and can easily spread to humans, a spokesman for the city’s Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Conservation said in an email. statement.
The city banned the import of all small mammals for commercial purposes in January last year after nearly a dozen hamsters imported from the Netherlands and sold in local pet stores were found to be infected with delta, a virulent variant of Covid-19 that has not yet been found. has been detected in the city for months until a worker there tested positive. Officials ordered thousands of pets to be euthanized. In May, the government banned the importation of all small mammals except hamsters because of the risk.
Hong Kong has been dismantling its Covid Zero policy for months, including lifting hotel quarantines, restricting new arrivals to bars or restaurants, and eliminating PCR tests for travelers after arriving in the city. The financial center said it plans to maintain the mask mandate, citing concerns about the strain placed on the health care system by Covid and influenza.
In recent weeks, China has also moved quickly from zero tolerance to the virus after a three-year absence from the rest of the world. The country will reopen to the world and break the quarantine for arrivals from January 8 as it seeks to expand its flagging economy. Hong Kong, whose border with mainland China has been effectively closed since early 2020, is also seeking quarantine-free travel with the mainland again on January 8.
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