The concern is great after the alarms about swine fever in the Fagerstat district. Intensive information work is now underway and in municipalities near the closed zone the Hunters’ Association will meet several times a week.
– It’s a good system for collecting questions from the members, says Ulf Berg at the Dalarna Hunters’ Association.
Many hunters have questions about swine fever and call the Hunters’ Association in Dalarna County and the districts in Västmanland, which are closest to the zone closed due to African swine fever.
Therefore, chairpersons in these areas have now decided to have digital video meetings three times a week where they can gather all the questions and then produce correct answers.
– People call me and ask questions, I can answer some of them. But it is better to get together and then come out with answers based on facts and proven experience, to borrow concepts from healthcare, says Ulf Berg, chairman of the Hunters’ Association in Dalarna County.
Advises against loose dogs
Right now, many people are out in the woods and fields because it is hunting season. The members’ questions concern, for example, if it is okay to let your dog run loose near the restricted zone.
Ulf Berg advises against this, because dogs, just like game, have no idea of boundaries.
The idea is that the questions will then be collected centrally in the organization, so that they can reach more members via, for example, the website.
In Örebro County, several hunters have wondered how they should behave when shooting wild boar.
– It will be a big procedure to hunt wild boar now. It is important to ensure that all waste is taken care of in a really safe way and not left in the forest, says Ola Karlsson, chairman of the Hunters’ Association in Örebro County.
However, people are not worried about eating wild boar, even if they are infected, according to him, because it is harmless to humans.
“New situation we are facing”
In several of the counties surrounding Fagersta, there is great concern, with many questions from the public. In Värmland, no special restrictions have been introduced, however work is now underway to primarily inform, according to county veterinarian Michaela Heidrich.
– We have been reminded of the advice that has existed for several years. Thinking about not throwing away food scraps in the forest. Avoid bringing meat products to Sweden from countries where there is swine fever, and if you compost food waste at home, you should do it in a closed container, says Heidrich.
In Västra Götaland, they will, among other things, send out newsletters with information.
– It is a new situation we are facing, so of course it will be worrying. There is a need to ask questions so we try to answer as best we can, says county veterinarian Emma Andersson.