By Sharon Bernstein
(Reuters) - Thousands of mink were roaming the countryside of northwestern Ohio on Wednesday after vandals broke into a farm that raises the fur-bearing creatures and released up to 40,000 from their cages, according to authorities.
The animals, which escaped on Tuesday, overran nearby roads, and many were hit by passing vehicles, while hunters went after still more, local media in Van Wert County, Ohio, reported. The Delphos Herald said that workers at the farm, located in Hoagland Township, were shooting at the animals as they ran across the property.
Sheriff Tom Riggenbach said in a news release that suspects destroyed fencing and released between 25,000 and 40,000 animals from their cages. He said the incident is being investigated as a case of vandalism and breaking and entering.
He warned that mink "are carnivorous animals that stick to a diet of fresh kills," regularly hunting animals larger than themselves. He urged homeowners, poultry farmers and others to stay away from the animals and call licensed trappers to corral them.
Commenting on Facebook (NASDAQ:META), local residents said a highway in Van Wert County, about 150 miles (241 km) north of Cincinnati near the Indiana border, was still covered in blood from animals that were hit by cars and trucks.
In 2013, a group calling itself the Animal Liberation Front took credit for releasing mink at a farm in Van Wert County. However, it was not immediately clear whether that group was involved in releasing the mink on Tuesday.
The Delphos Herald reported that the group took credit for releasing about 1,000 mink from another Ohio farm earlier this month.
The mink were being raised for their fur, a practice that animal rights advocates say is inhumane.
By Wednesday, fewer than 10,000 of the mink likely remained at large, the New York Times reported, citing an interview with Riggenbach.
Riggenbach did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Reuters.