by: Dongmei Zheng
update: Jan 05, 2015 13:13 GMT
Panda in serious condition after contracting virus
A giant panda infected with canine distemper is now in serious condition in north China's Shaanxi Province.
Da Bao, an 8-year-old giant panda, is one of the three pandas that have contracted the virus since the death of the first case on Dec. 9 in Shaanxi Rare Wild Animal Rescue and Research Center.
Da Bao, Feng Feng and Zhu Zhu were infected on Dec. 24, 25 and 27 respectively, according to the center.
The new cases occurred after Cheng Cheng, another eight-year-old giant panda, was found sick on Dec. 6 and died three days later.
Animal protectors are now monitoring the condition of Da Bao around the clock.
"It (the virus) can invade the nerve system, so it's vital to see whether the nerve system of the giant panda will hold well. In addition, its other organs, like the liver, kidney, cardiovascular system and respiratory system, as well as nutrition, lack of which may lead to anemia, are also vital points for its survival," said Jin Yipeng, an associate professor with the veterinary medicine department at China Agriculture University.
According to Jin, quickly enforcing its immunity is imperative for the survival of the panda.
"There's actually no medicine of special efficacy in an antiviral therapy. For an infection that has occurred what we need to do most is to win time for the panda's immunity system to recover to a level strong enough to resist the virus," said Jin.