COVID-19: J&K horse becomes first animal to be put under quarantine

Authorities in Jammu and Kashmir’s Rajouri district had to put a horse under quarantine after it travelled through a COVID-19 red zone.

The horse and its rider became the talk of the town when they reached Thanamandi in Rajouri district after passing through a red zone area.

Officials said the caretakers of the horse have been directed to use all protective gears while dealing with the animal.

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“A police team late Tuesday evening intercepted a man returning from Kashmir via Mughal road who was also carrying his horse with him,” official sources said, adding that the man was taken into a medical screening center while the authorities were in a fix to decide about the horse.

They said the concerned Tehsildar roped in the veterinary experts to get their views on the horse. “Majority of the veterinary experts claimed the horse doesn’t pose any threat as it is not a potential carrier of coronavirus, but authorities decided to send the animal to home quarantine as a precautionary measure,” sources added.

Additional Deputy Commissioner (ADC) Rajouri, Sher Singh said after taking into account the expert opinions, the horse was medically screened for body temperature following which it was handed over to other members of the family of the owner.

On April 8, J&K Wildlife department had decided to implement a tightened lockdown in the peripheries of wildlife zones and zoos in the Valley to prevent any transmission of the novel coronavirus from humans to animals.

The move came after the report of a tiger housed in Bronx Zoo, New York, contracting the deadly virus.