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About a dozen US mink farms are kept in quarantine as authorities investigate coronavirus outbreaks that have killed more than 15,000 of the furry creatures since August.
The Department of Agriculture and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention will work with state and mink industry officials from Utah, Wisconsin and Michigan to test and monitor infected farms.
“We believe that quarantining affected mink farms in addition to implementing strict biosecurity measures will help control SARS-CoV-2 in these locations,” USDA said in a statement to Reuters on Tuesday.
The move comes after Denmark announced last week that it would kill all of its 17 million mink from a mutated strain of coronavirus that was spreading to humans, posing a risk to vaccination efforts.
The CDC said there is currently no evidence in the United States that animals play a significant role in the spread of COVID-19 to humans.
In Wisconsin and Utah, the sick mink had been exposed to humans with probable or confirmed cases of COVID-19, while in Michigan it is still not known whether the animals were infected by humans, a the USDA declared.
Officials from affected states said they do not plan to slaughter their mink populations, adding that they are monitoring the situation in Denmark.
So far, in Utah – the first state to confirm cases of COVID-19 in mink in August – about 10,700 of the mammals have died on nine farms.
“Out of all nine, everything still suggests a one-way trip from people to mink,” said Dean Taylor, a state veterinarian.
In Wisconsin, about 5,000 mink died on two farms. Michigan refused to disclose the number of dead mink, citing confidentiality rules.
Authorities are urging farmers to take preventive measures, such as wearing masks and gloves, when handling mink to avoid infecting the animals.
Meanwhile, state officials are also working with the USDA to determine if infected mink skins can still be sold by farmers to make fur coats and other items.
Although the virus has also been found in cats, dogs, a lion and a tiger, officials say mink appear to be the most susceptible animal to date.
“Everything we learn about mink will help understand the virus across species,” Taylor said. “It’s going to give us a better response to people to stop this pandemic.”
With pole wires
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