Lovebird caught in PAL flight from Thailand

Flight attendants on a Philippine Airlines flight from Bangkok were surprised when they found an African lovebird inside the cabin last Sunday.

Cabin personnel, after an indoor chase, managed to capture the bird and turn it over to the custody of the Veterinary Quarantine Services (VQS) office of the Ninoy Aquino International Airport.

The lovebird died Monday and authorities preserved and refrigerated its body. VQS chief Dr. Simeon Amorao said the bird will be brought to the Bureau of Animal Industry  (BAI) in Quezon City where it will be subjected to an animal autopsy.

“It came from Thailand and Thailand is in our list of bird flu risk countries,” Amorao told The STAR in an interview.

The Department of Agriculture is implementing a total ban on the importation of livestock and poultry products from over 40 countries worldwide.

The Philippines is among the only three bird flu-free countries in the Southeast Asian region, along with Brunei and Singapore.

PAL vice president for corporate communications Rolly Estabillo, said the cabin in which the bird was found was disinfected.

He believes the person who brought the bird into the country may have left it inside the aircraft after it escaped from its cage.

Amorao said the owner cannot be charged for bringing the bird to the Philippines because all that his men could do is confiscate it, but noted that the Bureau of Customs can file charges for misdeclaration.

He explained that livestock and other poultry products could only be allowed to legally enter the country  if health certificates are properly secured. – Michael Punongbayan