Infected Minks Escaped From Danish Farm Could Spread Coronavirus in the Wild

A few days ago, residents living near the mink mass grave were concerned whether the resurfaced dead bodies of minks would increase the risk of contracting COVID-19. However, authorities have assured that there is no risk of COVID-19 transmission.

Now, recent reports have said that over 100 infected minks from Danish fur farms may have escaped. According to a report by ScienceAlert, this has caused a new concern on whether these animals could transmit the COVID-19 in the wild, creating a reservoir that will spread back to humans.

Danish Veterinary and Food Administration's veterinary research manager Sten Mortensen said that a few thousand minks would escape from the fur farms every year. But this year, it is estimated that over 5% of them may have been infected with the SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19.

Mutated Virus in Minks

The Danish government had ordered the culling of minks on several hundred mink farms that reported to have COVID-19 to prevent further spread of the disease.

But as the investigation goes on with the minks, the scientists have found that the coronavirus has mutated which could spread to humans. The authorities were concerned that the mutant virus could spread to more people and could potentially make COVID-19 vaccines less effective.

However, experts are doubting these claims and said that there is no enough evidence that the mutated virus could become resistant to the vaccines being developed. Additionally, despite that Denmark does not have any legal claims on culling the healthy animals, they have already culled more than 10 million minks out of the 17 million minks in the country.

There have been no new cases of mutant mink virus that have been reported in the last two weeks but authorities warn that the virus may still be spreading, specifically in the wild.

Could the Escaped Minks Transmit COVID-19 in the Wild?

Minks regularly escape from fur farms, but this year is most notable because 5% of them are infected and are now in the wild. But experts said that the risk of the escaped minks infecting other animals is low because minks are solitary animals who prefer to be alone.

On the other hand, they said that if the minks do interact with other animals, the animals that are most likely to catch the virus would be the raccoons, ferrets, dogs, and other susceptible domestic animals like cats.

The Guardian reported that the most likely route of transmission would be if the animal eats the infected mink or its feces.

Mortensen added that minks do not usually die even if they are infected with COVId-19 because they usually recover well, although some of them might have a few days of respiratory difficulty, but in general they recover and develop immunity against the virus.

The risk of COVID-19 transmitted into the wild has drawn concerns from many scientists. Transmission of COVId-19 into the wild means that the virus could create a reservoir that could someday reinfect humans.