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Washington calf cull begins
WILBUR, Wash. (AP)--Federal workers using a vacant slaughterhouse in rural Eastern Washington began culling a herd of calves that included the offspring of a Holstein infected with bovine spongiform encephalopathy whose bloodlines were traced to Canada.
The entire herd of 449 bull calves, ranging in age from 1 month to several months, was being sedated and given lethal injections Jan. 7 at a privately owned facility in Wilbur, said Nolan Lemon, spokesman for the U.S. Department of Agriculture.
USDA officials had said the herd would have to be killed because the calf born to the sick cow was not tagged and could not be identified. They have been unable to rule out the possibility that BSE can be transmitted from mother to calf.
The animals were not to be processed for meat or other products. The carcasses will be buried at a landfill in southern Washington, Lemon said. He could not say when.
Sheriff's cars blocked the snow-covered road leading to the slaughterhouse.
Calves could be seen in pens next to a one-story white block building. A sign outside was covered with a black plastic bag.
Some of the animals had been killed by mid-afternoon, and the rest of the 449 calves were scheduled to be killed by midnight Jan. 7, Lemon said. Contacted about midnight, he would not say whether the killing had been completed.
Workers were handling the process slowly because the calves were so young and they want to do it right, Lemon said. "The veterinarians have been taking their time to ensure that those animals weren't alarmed and were comfortable," he said.
Earlier Jan. 7, agriculture officials announced genetic testing had confirmed the infected Holstein was born in Canada. The DNA tests on the cow, one of its offspring and the semen from the cow's sire showed the cow came from a dairy farm in Alberta, said Dr. Ron DeHaven, USDA chief veterinarian.
Dr. Brian Evans, chief veterinary officer of the Canadian Food Inspection Agency, said independent testing from a Canadian lab confirmed the findings.
The results puts new emphasis on Canada's role in the investigation of the outbreak of the brain-wasting disease. The Holstein is the second cow originating in western Canada diagnosed with BSE since May.
The cow, which was slaughtered Dec. 9, had come to the United States from Canada with 80 other cattle two years ago. The herd was dispersed because the previous owner could no longer operate his farm, Evans said.
Both countries have been trying to locate the remaining cattle. U.S. authorities so far have found 10 animals at two Washington farms that remained under quarantine.
Evans also said Canadian records indicate an additional 17 young cows were from the Canadian herd, including a calf by the infected animal that entered the United States later. USDA officials said they still were trying to confirm that information.
The test results mean investigators will intensify their search for the source of infection, most likely from contaminated feed, in Alberta, where both Canadian cows that tested positive for the disease were born.
Officials have said they believe the cows were probably infected as calves because they were born before August 1997, when both countries banned cattle feed that contained parts of cattle, sheep or other cud-chewing animals.
News reports published in Canada have said the herd with the infected Holstein originated at a dairy farm near Leduc, Alberta, about 20 miles south of Edmonton. The area has about 300 dairy farms.
"If there's anything good to come out of this, it's that they banned parts in feed. Anything since then should not be affected," said Rita Kneller, manager of a Leduc company that provides equipment for dairy farms. "We're hopeful that the investigation will show that there are no problems, and everything can resume as it had been."
The U.S. beef industry renewed its call for resumption of international trade in American beef following the announcement. More than 30 countries banned imports of U.S. beef after BSE disease was diagnosed.
Date: 1/8/04
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