Aims:
- To investigate the role of bacteria, viruses and parasites currently considered pathogenic in minks and foxes and to strive to improve and refine gastrointestinal disease diagnostics.
- To investigate, in particular, the part that viruses, for which no analysis methods yet exist in Finland, play in the pathogenesis of diarrhoea.
- To investigate the role of non-infectious agents in the occurrence of diarrhoea in blue foxes and minks through a circumstance survey.
Keywords:
farmed mink, farmed fox, diarrhoea, viruses, bacteria, parasites
Responsible project leader:
Research Professor Antti Oksanen
Person at Evira responsible for the project:
Research Professor Antti Oksanen
In cooperation with:
Finnish Food Safety Authority Evira;
Finnish Fur Breeders’ Association ProFur: responsible for sampling at farms and survey of farm circumstances and operations;
University of Helsinki (Faculty of Medicine, Medicum, Department of Virology);
Seinäjoki environmental laboratory Seinäjoen Ympäristölaboratorio, Seilab Oy
Project status:
Previous.
Year of commencement:
2014
Year of completion:
2017
Publications:
Smura T., Aaltonen K., Virtanen J., Moisander-Jylhä A-M., Nordgren H., Peura J., Oksanen A., Vapalahti O., and Sironen T. (2016): Fecal microbiota of healthy and diarrheic farmed arctic foxes (Vulpes lagopus) and American mink (Neovison vison) – a case-control study. Proceedings of the XIth International Congress in Fur Animal Production, Scientifur 40: 17-21
Project financed by:
Makera;
Finnish Food Safety Authority Evira;
Finnish Fur Breeders’ Association ProFur