In just the last few days, 7 dead boars have washed up on the shore of the Danish island of Erö. In the context of Denmark’s defense against African swine fever (ASF), the animals were destroyed, but the virus was not checked.
The animals were found in different places on the south coast of Erie, said Dr. Stig Mellergaard, senior adviser to the Danish Ministry of the Environment and Food.
Wild boars are unlikely to be of Danish origin: “We know that the wild boar population in Denmark now numbers 30-40 animals and is concentrated in southern Jutland, not far from the Danish-German border. So it’s unlikely that these sunken animals are from Denmark. ”
However, according to Dr. Mellergaard, a study for the presence of African swine fever virus (ASF) was not carried out, because the distance from the place of detection of corpses in the next ASF outbreak in Poland reaches more than 600 km. in a straight line. Therefore, it is unlikely that the animals died due to ASF.
“We are checking all killed and shot boars from Denmark to document that Denmark is free from ASF.
However, testing animals of unknown origin is only of academic interest, and if the result of such a test is unexpectedly positive, Denmark will have to report it to the OIE, and this will be considered as a case in Denmark. It will be very difficult to explain to the world that, in fact, this is not the case of Denmark, but reflects the problem of another country. ”
According to Dr. Mellergaard, new cases of identification of animals ashore will be treated in a similar way.