Farmanimal escapes are a serious problem for fur farms, most notably minkfarms. Accidental escapes are caused by carelessness during zootechnicalprocedures, human errors of poorly qualified personnel during routineanimal handling activities (animal removal from cases for vaccination,mating, weaning, etc.), animal transportation, insufficient protectionof livestock housings.
Aninspection carried out at mink farms in the Wielkopolskie Province bythe Supreme Audit Office (NIK) in 2011 confirmed numerous defaults atfur farms which could lead to animal escapes. There have been a numberof serious irregularities revealed ? 87% of farms did not followenvironmental protection regulations, 48% operated in illegally built orinappropriately used buildings, 35% did not follow veterinaryregulations. Veterinary supervision over fur farms andthe operationsof environmental protection authorities have been negatively evaluatedas well.
Escapedanimals, apart from animals intentionally released by ecologicalmovements, and the introduction programmes in post-Soviet states havecontributed to the formation of strong and expansive populations ofAmerican mink living in the wild. Almost all over Poland, American minkis one of the most expansive species which poses a serious threat forthe critically endangered European mink (Mustela lutreola), and European water vole (Arvicola amphibius) as well as numerous ground-nesting species of birds which are inherent to the Baltic ecosystem (Common Ringed Plover/Charadrius hiaticula, Parasitic Jaeger/Stercorarius parasiticus, Arctic Tern/Sterna paradisaea, Eurasian Rock Pipit/Anthus petrosus, Ruddy Turnstone/Arenaria interpres, Common Gull/Larus canus, Northern Wheatear/Oenanthe oenanthe, Razorbill/Alca torda, Black Guillemot/Cepphus grylle).
Apartfrom predation and competition for natural resources, escaped minks cantransmit diseases (risk of Aleutian Disease Virus transmission to wildanimals, such as European otter/Lutra lutra and European polecat/Mustela putorius).