Important note: Information in this article was accurate in 2000. The state of the art may have changed since the publication date.
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The New Vision (Uganda) - Wednesday, May 03, 2000
Dr. Ludwig Siefert, a wildlife health lecturer at the Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Makerere University, said the bug, named Feline Immunodeficiency Virus (FIV), made lions succumb to diseases such as tuberculosis that they would otherwise resist.
The incurable disease, also called cat AIDS, is transmitted through bite wounds, suckling and mating. It affects domestic and wild carnivores but not human beings.
Speaking to The New Vision during the opening of the wildlife department at the faculty of veterinary medicine on Friday, Siefert said the lions still looked healthy but were at a high risk of falling sick. The symptoms include progressive wasting and recurrent fevers.
"We know that FIV can lower the immunity. It is like AIDS. We are monitoring them (lions). If there is an outbreak, we know what to do," he said.
He said tuberculosis had been detected in prey animals like buffaloes and warthogs, posing a threat to the lions that are under FIV stress. Lions can contract TB by eating infected prey animals. The park has about 200 lions.
The same survey revealed a high prevalence of a dog disease called canine distemper, among the lions in the park.
Siefert said hyenas could have picked the viruses from domestic carnivores and transmitted them to lions. He said they had vaccinated the dogs and cats around the park, but the lions would not be vaccinated yet.
"There is a very strong demand by tourists to view certain species, so we want to see them healthy," he said.
"I am not sure if lions can transfer the disease to domestic animals. It is the other way round," he said.
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