'Cabanatuan vet warns
dog meat may have coronavirus
'By C. Marquez
Jr.
'TODAY Correspondent
'CABANATUAN CITY -
Dog-eaters might also get infected with the canine
coronavirus inducing a disease similar to the
lethal severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS).
'A local veterinarian
raised this alarm after noting that many local
residents are sneaking to eat cooked dog meat
again after its having being banned.
'“We might have not
noticed it in the past for lack of knowledge of
it, but certain mysterious deaths could have been
caused by the virus derived from infected dog
meat. It could be the same coronavirus found in
civet cats in China,” said Ricardo Bautista,
Cabanatuan City veterinary office chief.
'Some shrewd owners of
restaurants and beer houses serving dog meat as
their special dish would buy sick dogs that are
about to die. They would butcher the sick animal,
bought at a low price, and sell the cooked dog
meat as appetizers for drinkers.
'The Italian-based
International Veterinary Information Service
(IVIS) posted on its website the basic facts about
coronavirus in dogs. The early signs manifested in
infected animals consisted of vomiting and
diarrhea that last for three days.
'“[Coronavirus in dogs
is] associated with moderate to severe
gastroenteritis . . . and transmitted through
feces and saliva. The virus in feces is the major
source of infection that lasts from six to nine
days, and prolonged in pups even after the first
signs have disappeared,” ivis said.
'The virus is
“acid-resistant and it passes unaltered through
[the dog’s] stomach.”
'The canine coronavirus
could also mutate to canine distemper deficiency
called immune suppression, which reaches the brain
and the lungs of the dog.
'“So we are not safe if
we eat the kilawin [finely chopped dog meat served
raw with vinegar and spices],” Bautista said. For
more delicious preparation, some also add boiled
dog’s brain and broiled entrails -- the dwelling
parts of the coronavirus in the dog.
'Dog meat had been banned
in Cabanatuan when an ordinance was passed during
the time of deceased Mayor Honorato Perez. Lately,
however, Bautista and other health authorities
observed that there are stores selling dog meat
and made as a main "pulutan" (finger food) in some
private drinking sessions in the city.'
