An animal protection group visited several Chinese farms where foxes, raccoon dogs and opossums are raised to sell their pelts. The farms in northern China's Hebei and Liaoning provinces each housed between 2,000 and 4,000 animals in overcrowded conditions.
The high animal population density on these farms facilitates the rapid spread of viruses in the fluids of one another, the group said. His warning brings echoes of the start of the COVID-19 pandemic in the city of Wuhan. The rapid circulation and mixing of different virus strains from one animal to another facilitates their adaptation to a mammalian host, the development of worrying mutant strains and a greater likelihood of the threat of human infection, the HSI warned. The Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs did not respond to requests for comment on the conditions of these farms and the risk of disease spread. The HSI photos and images showed the animals crammed into small cages with metal mesh floors. According to veterinary experts, many animals repeatedly paced from one place to another, an action related to psychological disorders.