WI - Dead mink in Taylor County tests positive for COVID-19

[Mary Wilson]

By FOX6 News Digital Team
Published 1 hour ago

TAYLOR COUNTY, Wis. - The National Veterinary Services Laboratories (NVSL) confirms that dead mink at a Taylor County mink farm have tested positive for SARS-CoV-2 infection, the virus that causes COVID-19 in humans. This is the first confirmed SARS-CoV-2 infection among Wisconsin’s mink population.

The Department of Agriculture, Trade and Consumer Protection (DATCP) has quarantined all animals on the farm, meaning no animals or animal products may leave the premise.


https://www.fox6now.com/news/dead-mi...e-for-covid-19

[Mary Wilson]

Breaking news: Mink on Wisconsin fur farm test positive for coronavirus, but U.S. inaction continues

THURSDAY, OCTOBER 8, 2020
By Sara Amundson and Kitty Block

Mink have tested positive for the coronavirus on a fur farm in Wisconsin, the largest fur producing U.S. state.

... the United States has failed to act proactively since the Utah outbreak, other than to offer vague guidance for fur farms. This despite the fact that 7,000 to 8,000 mink have died on Utah fur farms.

... Such inaction by a nation with the world’s largest reported coronavirus case count among humans is indefensible. And the disregard for the animal suffering involved is unforgiveable. Fur farms are miserable places for wild animals like mink. The animals are typically held captive in small cages with no enrichment, and their most basic needs are often denied. Our investigations have shown animals on fur farms being bludgeoned to death and even being skinned alive.

... According to news reports this week, the Fur Commission USA said fur from the dead infected animals in Utah would be processed to remove any traces of the virus and then used for coats and other garments. Such callousness is not entirely surprising from an industry group that is fighting to hold on to a dying business built on animal cruelty.

Kitty Block is President and CEO of the Humane Society of the United States.

https://hslf.org/blog/2020/10/breaking-news-mink-wisconsin-fur-farm-test-positive-coronavirus-us-inaction-continues