Denmark: Mink farms have started a government-ordered slaughter amidst the worry that animals infected with coronavirus could transmit the illness to humans.
Infected mink have been found on 10 farms where the ferret-like animals are grown for their fur. “All mink breeding farms where there is an infection will be cleared, and farms where there are no infections won’t be,” said a spokeswoman.
The government ordered the cull of 10,000 mink on Wednesday after determining that affected farms could act as a long-term reservoir of disease. Dutch mink were first infected with coronavirus by their handlers. In May, the government identified two cases in which humans had been infected by sick animals, the only animal-to-human transmissions known since the global outbreak began in China.
“We are calling for the 24 countries around the world that still allow mink farming to very rapidly evaluate the situation and evidence coming out of the Netherlands,” said the executive director of the Humane Society International. The group says China, Denmark and Poland are the largest mink producers, with 60 million killed annually for their fur.
Post Your Comments