Erfurt (dpa/th) – In the fight against African swine fever, Thuringia is also relying on the old hunting method “sauffang”. A spokeswoman for the Thuringian Ministry of Health said on Wednesday that entire herds of wild boar could be lured into large gates with food and killed there. This would effectively reduce the wild boar population and contain African swine fever (ASF). This was shown by experiences from Belgium, the Czech Republic and Brandenburg.
The country has now procured 40 binges and accessories worth around 140,000 euros, which hunters can borrow free of charge. Thirteen of them are already being used for test purposes. In addition, courses on the use of the hunting method have been held in the Sonneberg Forestry Office since 2020.
After recent ASF cases in neighboring Saxony, Thuringia is stepping up preparations for a possible outbreak of African swine fever. According to the ministry, a total of around 1.2 million euros flowed into protective fences, trap flaps, wildlife cameras and two carcass detection dogs, among other things.
ASF is a viral infection that only affects pigs. It is almost always fatal and incurable. There is no way to protect pigs by vaccination. The disease can be transmitted directly from animal to animal or indirectly from humans to other areas via contaminated objects such as clothing or vehicles and feed. ASF is not contagious or dangerous to humans or other animal species.
