Mink farm cull in Denmark

[Catherine]

Covid 19 has been found on mink farms in Denmark. There are some issues of it being a mutated form and of transmission to humans.
The planned response is to cull the mink, all 17 million of them.

https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-54818615

I don't know what shocks me more, the culling of 17 million mink  or the  fact that there are 17 million farmed mink in Denmark in the first place.
That is a shocking loss of life. I know they were destined to be killed for their fur anyhow, but this  is somehow different.

Everywhere mink are being culled because of Covid. Maybe this will be the thing that finally ends fur farming.


https://www.bbc.com/news/science-environment-52535075

Quote:Claire Bass, executive director of Humane Society International/UK, said in addition to animal suffering, the potential for disease spread is another reason for all fashion companies to go fur-free and for governments to shut down "this dirty trade".

"One of the lessons we must learn from Covid-19 is that we cannot carry on pushing animals to the limit of their endurance without serious consequences for both animal and human health," she said.

I couldn't word this better than Claire Bass did.  
Our Covid 19 crisis is the result of our treatment  of animals. Fur farming, factory farming, wildlife food markets and poaching have all had negative consequences for us. For our own survival we need to change. If we had treated animals well we would not be in the mess we are in now.

It is horrifying to think of 17 million  mink being killed, but maybe they will be the last for that area. It would make no sense to start up a new mink farming business. As mink farms close maybe they can reopen as a different kind of business.