Twenty-eight water buffalo born in Canada from parents imported from
Denmark have tested negative for bovine spongiform encephalopathy.
“They now can have the opportunity of not having any shadow of doubt of
the disease status,” said Con Kiley, the Canadian Food Inspection
Agency’s regional veterinary officer in British Columbia.
Denmark reported its first case of BSE one month after a Duncan, B.C.,
couple imported 18 water buffalo from that country.
While the original imports were eventually destroyed, the Canadian-born
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offspring have been released from quarantine.
Kiley said even though there was little chance the water buffalo
imported from Denmark had contracted the disease, the original animals
had to be destroyed to protect the Canadian livestock industry.
“We knew it was remote, but with BSE we have to be very vigilant and
very careful,” Kiley said.
Meanwhile, test results will be available in about two weeks from 12
Wagyu cattle from two different Calgary area farms.
They were imported from Japan before that country announced its first
BSE case.
Canada’s first and only case of BSE was discovered in the Red Deer area
in 1993 from an animal imported from Great Britain. After the animal
was discovered, all animals imported from Britain as far back as the
1980s were destroyed.
