Asian Elephants in Europe 2024

Third elephant at Dublin Zoo tests positive for deadly virus

Here are some more information about the situation. Asha has no clinical signs yet. They recently sent samples to the Dutch laboratory to check if she has enough antibodies and if the answer is yes, there is no reason to worry. But I am pissed off that they did not check the antibody status of their herd before! All zoos should do that, and if young elephants have low antibodies, they can and need to prepare. It doesn’t seem Dublin prepared, which may have cost Zinda and Avanis live….
 
ZCChip said:
oh man. When it rains it pours.
Hopefully they are treating it with antiviral meds.
Click to expand...
Antiviral meds are not the most important part of EEHV therapy - it is still unknown of the drugs actually work (but they are nevertheless recommended). But even more important are giving fluids and blood products; both are proven to greatly help counteracting the damage of an acute EEHV infection.
 
Yassa said:
Antiviral meds are not the most important part of EEHV therapy - it is still unknown of the drugs actually work (but they are nevertheless recommended). But even more important are giving fluids and blood products; both are proven to greatly help counteracting the damage of an acute EEHV infection.
Click to expand...

yes the meds are unpredictable due to the fact they are given either orally or rectally. Those two methods make it difficult for the elephant to absorb the medications.

that’s why if the vaccine is successful it is a major breakthrough.
 
Yassa said:
Here are some more information about the situation. Asha has no clinical signs yet. They recently sent samples to the Dutch laboratory to check if she has enough antibodies and if the answer is yes, there is no reason to worry. But I am pissed off that they did not check the antibody status of their herd before! All zoos should do that, and if young elephants have low antibodies, they can and need to prepare. It doesn’t seem Dublin prepared, which may have cost Zinda and Avanis live….
Click to expand...
Fingers crossed Asha's age will get her over the hump; it would be tragic to lose another cow.

I was also surprised to see that Dublin wasn't aware of the antibody status of each of their elephants. This is something that should be done with EEHV vigilance, but I acknowledge this is probably not done at every facility as it's not standard protocol.

I'm also wondering if they've identified the strain too yet. This is crucial knowledge for treatment (if required); although at the moment Asha isn't presenting any symptoms which is indicative of an elephant with the adequate antibodies present.
 
Yassa said:
Third elephant at Dublin Zoo tests positive for deadly virus

Here are some more information about the situation. Asha has no clinical signs yet. They recently sent samples to the Dutch laboratory to check if she has enough antibodies and if the answer is yes, there is no reason to worry. But I am pissed off that they did not check the antibody status of their herd before! All zoos should do that, and if young elephants have low antibodies, they can and need to prepare. It doesn’t seem Dublin prepared, which may have cost Zinda and Avanis live….
Click to expand...
I agree ... it does seem to be a bit of lack of concern or at least otter complacency.

These deaths could have been avoided with the appropriate monitoring on site and preventative medicine and treatment (blood and plasma with antibodies available on site).
 
Kifaru Bwana said:
These deaths could have been avoided with the appropriate monitoring on site and preventative medicine and treatment (blood and plasma with antibodies available on site).
Click to expand...

I think that is too harsh, there is no way to know if better preparation and early treatment would have made a difference. A lot of calves die from EEHV despite getting the best treatment. But it is a sad truth that A LOT of zoos in Europe do not do everything that science offers against EEHV.
 
Jambo said:
Fingers crossed Asha's age will get her over the hump; it would be tragic to lose another cow.

I was also surprised to see that Dublin wasn't aware of the antibody status of each of their elephants. This is something that should be done with EEHV vigilance, but I acknowledge this is probably not done at every facility as it's not standard protocol.

I'm also wondering if they've identified the strain too yet. This is crucial knowledge for treatment (if required); although at the moment Asha isn't presenting any symptoms which is indicative of an elephant with the adequate antibodies present.
Click to expand...
I'm genuinely shocked that EEHV protocol is so lax in many European Zoos. In the US it's commonplace and accepted that calves are tested often for the virus. Dublin didn't even know Avani had the virus until she passed. Its such a shame that big name zoos dont have more preventative protocols in place, especially one like Dublin that works closely with US zoos. While I don't want to be harsh, this situation was possibly preventative and its simply devastating.
 
Yassa said:
I think that is too harsh, there is no way to know if better preparation and early treatment would have made a difference. A lot of calves die from EEHV despite getting the best treatment. But it is a sad truth that A LOT of zoos in Europe do not do everything that science offers against EEHV.
Click to expand...
The latter is exactly what I am saying and some zoos do monitor their herds continuously and pretesting is critical to prevent the viral disease from flaring up in any zoo involved in the program.
Unless there is a fully functional across-the-board effective vaccination in place all alleys of preventative medicine should be followed diligently by every zoo within the EAZA EEP for Asiatic elephants.
 
Does anybody know why Chamundi's moving to Augsburg cancelled? The original plan was ge moves together with Ta Wan and they will live 3 together with Assam in Augsburg.
 
If she has the antibodies that an elephant in her age normally has, this is no big deal. It is perfectly normal that EEHV cycles through an elephant herd serveral times each year. Asha also tested positive a week ago or so and apparently she is healthy.
 
Yassa said:
If she has the antibodies that an elephant in her age normally has, this is no big deal. It is perfectly normal that EEHV cycles through an elephant herd serveral times each year. Asha also tested positive a week ago or so and apparently she is healthy.
Click to expand...
Neither are showing clinical signs, which is incredibly promising imo. Asha should be out of the at risk category, I don't think there's been an elephant her age that has died from EEHV. Samiya is still very much within the at risk category, but catching it early with her gives her a very good chance. It would be devastating for them to loose her too.
 
ZCChip said:
I just read on the Chester zoo thread that Sundara had passed away. She was pregnant.

Sundara Hi Way | Chester Zoo
Click to expand...

Here is the article from Chester’s Website,
Sundara Hi Way | Chester Zoo

“Both Animal care and veterinary teams rushed to help her but, despite doing everything they could to try and treat her, Sundara deteriorated rapidly and very sadly passed away.

An examination has since taken place to help us understand the exact cause of the unexpected loss of Sundara. It has revealed that she had twisted intestines.

This complication can occur in a range of mammals, for example it is sometimes seen in horses. It can onset very quickly and is almost impossible to diagnose or treat in elephants.”
 
I am wondering. With two younger cows at Chester with the youngest never seeing a birth and Maya supposedly (per the tv show) is not as well connected with the other cows, would chester consider bringing in another cow that has had calves before to be a nanny and possibly develop a second family line at the zoo?
 
ZCChip said:
I am wondering. With two younger cows at Chester with the youngest never seeing a birth and Maya supposedly (per the tv show) is not as well connected with the other cows, would chester consider bringing in another cow that has had calves before to be a nanny and possibly develop a second family line at the zoo?
Click to expand...
I doubt it considering the challenges of having different matrilines together. However, there is a unique opportunity to do so due to Indali and Riva's ages. Perhaps bringing in a middle aged female and a young female calf of her's (similar age to Riva) could work well. Nevertheless, it's probably likely they just maintain the sister duo of Indali and Riva and acquire a bull for breeding a few years down the line. Adding in new cows could create problems down the line so it's a big risk which they may not be willing to take.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top