Joe Exotic, the flamboyant and controversial star of Netflix’s “Tiger King,” is in quarantine at a prison in Fort Worth, Texas after being transferred from another facility with positive coronavirus cases.
Exotic himself has not tested positive for the disease as of yet. If you haven’t watched this series yet, be warned, it can be disturbing for some viewers and assist in lowering your IQ.
In other tiger related news, a Bronx Zoo Malayan tiger has tested positive for the coronavirus. The 4-year old Malayan tiger developed a dry cough and was tested for COVID-19.
The Wildlife Conservation Society said in a statement, “Nadia, a 4-year-old female Malayan tiger at the Bronx Zoo, has tested positive for COVID-19. She, her sister Azul, two Amur tigers, and three African lions had developed a dry cough and all are expected to recover. This positive COVID-19 test for the tiger was confirmed by USDA’s National Veterinary Services Laboratory, based in Ames, Iowa.”
The four affected tigers live in the zoo’s Tiger Mountain exhibit. One male Amur tiger that also lives at Tiger Mountain has not exhibited any clinical signs, and a Malayan tiger and two Amur tigers at the zoo’s Wild Asia exhibit have also not exhibited any clinical signs.
None of the zoo’s snow leopards, cheetahs, clouded leopard, Amur leopard, puma or serval are showing any signs of illness. “Our cats were infected by a person caring for them who was asymptomatically infected with the virus or before that person developed symptoms.” Appropriate preventive measures are now in place for all staff who are caring for them, and the other cats in the four WCS zoos, to prevent further exposure of any other of the zoo cats.
COVID-19 is a disease caused by the coronavirus known as SARS-CoV-2. It is believed that the virus was first transferred to people at a food market that trades in wildlife in Wuhan, China. There is no evidence that animals play a role in the transmission of COVID-19 to people other than the initial event in the Wuhan market, and no evidence that any person has been infected with COVID-19 in the US by animals, including by pet dogs or cats.