Why does it seem like every single time there’s a major infectious disease of some type it always has its origin in China? What the heck are people doing over there to cause this problem? I mean, we basically know that the issues with COVID were the result of a lab leak from experiments being done on the coronavirus that should have never been done, but what in the world is going on over there now?
Well, according to the latest report from NBC News, an investigation launched into five fur farms in the communist country that house animals such as foxes, raccoons, dogs, and mink has found there’s a high-risk of diseases developing that could make the jump over to humans, the Humane Society International said.
The farms, which are located in the northern Hebei and Liaoning provinces in China, hold between 2,000 and 4,000 animals in what the report called “intensive conditions,” which includes having them in close proximity to poultry, according to the HSI.
A visiting professor from Surrey University’s Veterinary School, Alastair MacMillan, went on to stated that the high stock density of the animals being kept on the farms facilitate the rapid spread of viruses traveling on droplets from one creature to another, and possibly humans.
“The rapid circulation and mixing of different strains of virus from animal to animal facilitates their adaption to a mammalian host, the development of mutant strains of concern and a greater likelihood of a threat of human infection,” he said.
China’s Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs did not respond to requests for comment regarding the conditions on the fur farms and the risk of disease spread.
MacMillan said that from a disease transmission and public health perspective the footage was extremely worrying as it is well known that animals farmed for their fur are susceptible to respiratory viruses that can infect humans. Data from the early days of the Covid-19 pandemic briefly uploaded to a database by Chinese scientists last year suggested raccoon dogs may also have been involved in coronavirus reaching humans.
Photos and footage from HSI showed animals densely packed in small empty cages with wire mesh floors. Reuters was not able to independently verify the footage. Many animals could be seen pacing up and down repetitively, an action linked to psychological distress, according to veterinary experts.
“Mentally disturbed animals, piles of animal filth, barren cages and worrying zoonotic disease is in stark contrast to the glamorous image the fur trade tries to portray,” Peter Li, HSI’s China policy expert, went on to say about the situation at the farms.
There is still quite a large demand for fur products, despite the fact that the production of such items in China has gone down by 50 percent from 2022 to 2023 and almost a 90 percent decline over the last 10 years.
Several social media platforms, which includes an e-shop called Xiaohongshu features posts that have users talking about wearing the fir as being practical for helping them to keep warm.
This seems really cruel, doesn’t it? The conditions these animals are living in is pretty bad. And the fact that they are spreading viruses like crazy and that these suckers mutate so that they can be passed on to us is infuriating.
Be on the look out for the next pandemic, coming to us with love from China.
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