"In recent years, the human population has been shocked by the Zika virus outbreak, which is spread through mosquito bites. Not only does mosquito-borne disease spread to humans, it also happens to tigers, but through infected dogs. Sick dogs can transmit Canine Distemper Virus (CDV) to tigers.

What is CDV? This disease usually affects dogs only. However, as reported by nationalgeographic.com, studies reveal that CDV does not only affect dogs, as in 2000 it was reported that the virus affects the entire carnivore family, including Sumatran tigers.

Animals infected by CDV will look lethargic, have decreased appetite, dirty eyes, vomiting, diarrhea, and if the virus attacks the respiratory tract, the dog will cough. When CDV attacks the nervous system, there will be twitching of the eyelids, lips, pain when touched (hyperesthesia), and the dog will have seizures. If it attacks the respiratory system or digestive system, the chances of an animal with CDV recovering are 50 percent. Meanwhile, if it attacks the nervous system, the chance of survival is less than 10 percent, which means that the mortality rate caused by this disease is very high.

The virus, which is related to the measles virus, is thought to be the cause of the extinction of the Tasmanian tiger (Thylacinus cynocephalus), a marsupial carnivore with tiger-like hair on the island of Tasmania, South Australia. The existence of the CDV virus attack on tigers was suggested by John Lewis, Director of Wildlife Vets International. CDV can cause damage to the tiger's brain and make these big cats lose their natural fear of humans.

The disease therefore adds another type of threat to tigers and increases the potential for conflict between tigers and humans. The loss of human fear instinct also allows tigers to enter human settlements and fail to escape from poachers. Eventually, their lives will be ended by the hot lead of the poachers.

This fearless behavior of tigers towards humans was also stated by Sunarto, Sumatran Tiger expert of WWF-Indonesia. Whereas usually tigers tend to avoid when meeting humans. Sunarto added, in Sumatra, there have been symptoms of the spread of CDV in the Bengkulu, Jambi and Riau regions.

There are several factors that allegedly cause Sumatran tigers to contract CDV. One of them is an increase in the intensity of interactions between humans, pets, and wildlife caused by forest encroachment activities. The involvement of people's pet dogs when hunting also increases the potential for transmission of the CDV virus.

Many animals have died as a result of being infected with this virus. In fact, the Journal of Zoo and Wildlife Medicine writes that the death rate of animals caused by this virus ranks second only to rabies. The threats faced by Sumatran tigers are now not only habitat shrinkage and poaching. The presence of CDV is a major threat to the preservation of Sumatran Tigers in the world. Quoted from nationalgeographic.co.id, based on a study in the Journal of Veterinary Diagnostic Investigation noted that CDV has killed 17 lions, tigers and leopards. These big cats were infected after eating raccoons infected by CDV.

The issue of CDV also needs our attention, because it turns out that the potential for transmission can also come from the animals we keep. If previously habitat destruction and poaching were voiced by Sumatran tiger conservationists as threats, then now CDV disease can also wipe out the last big cat with stripes that we have.