Influence of farm, feed-producer and season on incidence of gastrointestinal disorders in Danish farm mink.

The distribution of gastrointestinal disorders in mink in Danish farms is presented based on data collected in a longitudinal design. The time at risk was from weaning in June until pelting in November. The occurrence of gastrointestinal disorders after weaning of the mink kits together with the distribution within farms was studied. The period of highest risk was in the months immediately after weaning (July and August). More than 17% of the farms recorded GI disorders among > or = 10% of pairs of animals. A multilevel statistical analysis showed that besides the effect of time after weaning, a significant part of the variation in the incidence could be attributed to the farm and feed-producer. The potential for bias is discussed.