Coronavirus: PETA takes cheeky jab at Scott Morrison’s jigsaw puzzle obsession

PETA has waded into the isolation debate saying Scott Morrison might enjoy a puzzle they’ve created showing animals who’ve carried zoonotic viruses.

An animal welfare organisation have made a puzzle about zoonotic diseases for Scott Morrison after he called jigsaws "essential" during a pandemic.

PETA have taken aim at the Prime Minister’s off-the-cuff comments about using puzzles to pass the time while practising social distancing, as Australians stay at home to flatten the curve and control the rate of the coronavirus spreading in the community.

Mr Morrison said his wife Jenny had been out to buy jigsaw puzzles for him and his children and he felt they’d become “absolutely essential” in coming months.

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PETA claimed to have sent the 500 piece jigsaw to Scott Morrison’s office.

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PETA said in an open letter they’d created a customised and educational jigsaw puzzle for Mr Morrison which they claimed to have sent to his office.

The 500-piece jigsaw puzzle includes a picture of a bat, a pangolin, a pig, a cow, a chicken, and a civet. Each animal is holding a sign with the name of the zoonotic disease they passed to humans.

“(PETA) has sent a customised jigsaw puzzle to his office with an important message to help him piece together the best way to avoid future pandemics,” the group said today.

In an open letter to the Prime Minister, PETA said the majority of recent diseases were the result of zoonotic viruses which jump from animals to humans, and these virus conversion events are the “result of animal exploitation”.

"Zoonotic diseases aren't limited to a single country or to wet markets – wherever animals are bred, intensively confined, and slaughtered, humans run the risk of creating another pandemic," Emily Rice from PETA said in the open letter.

“From swine flu and ebola to bird flu and coronaviruses, the public health risks associated with our cruel consumption of animals are growing – and enough is enough.”

The letter warned that the current coronavirus outbreak “once again that animal agriculture is a risky business”.

“It’s likely that somewhere among the multitude of species that humans exploit, the next – potentially worse – pandemic is incubating right now.”