Mad Cow Disease: Holstein With BSE Was Euthanized After Going Lame

This Wednesday, April 25, 2012 photo shows a herd of cows in DeWitt, Neb. The beef industry responded swiftly after the first new case of mad cow disease was found in the U.S. since 2006. With billions of dollars at risk, the USDA and other government officials quickly explained that consumers were never at risk because none of the animal’s meat was bound for the food supply. (AP Photo/Nati Harnik)

The U.S. Department of Agriculture also said Thursday that the animal was 10 years and seven months old.

A spokesman for U.S. Rep. Devin Nunes of California had said Wednesday that the sick cow was 5 years old. It came from a dairy farm in Tulare County, the nation's No. 1 dairy-producing county.

The USDA didn't elaborate on the cow's symptoms other than to say it was "humanely euthanized after it developed lameness and became recumbent." Outward signs of the disease can include unsteadiness and incoordination.

Routine testing at a transfer facility showed the dead Holstein, which was destined for a rendering plant, had mad cow disease, or bovine spongiform encephalopathy. The results were announced Tuesday. It was the fourth case of mad cow disease ever discovered in the U.S.

Animals at greater risk for the disease include those with symptoms of neurological disease, "downer" animals at slaughterhouses, animals that die at dairies or cattle ranches for unknown reasons, and cows more than 2 1/2 years old, because BSE occurs in older cows.

U.S. health officials say there is no risk to the food supply. The California cow was never destined for the meat market, and it developed "atypical" BSE from a random mutation, something that scientists know happens occasionally. Somehow, a protein the body normally harbors folds into an abnormal shape called a prion, setting off a chain reaction of misfolds that eventually kills brain cells.

In other countries, BSE's spread through herds was blamed on making cattle feed using recycled meat and bone meal from infected cows, so the U.S. has long banned feed containing such material.

The last two cases found in the U.S. were atypical as well.

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Previous U.S. cases of mad cow:

December 2003: First U.S. Case Of Mad Cow Disease

The first confirmed case of mad cow disease in the U.S. involved an animal from a farm in Mabton, Wash. The Holstein had been imported in 2001 from Alberta, Canada, along with 70 other cows. The animal was a "downer," which means it was unable to walk when it reached the slaughterhouse, a condition that mandates automatic testing from the USDA. Following the determination of mad cow, the processor, Vern's Moses Lake Meats, voluntarily recalled 10,410 pounds of raw beef amid concerns that products might be tainted. These cows, pictured at Sunny Dene Ranch in Mabton, were quarantined in the following months during an investigation.

June 2005: Second Confirmed U.S. Case

The second confirmed occurrence of the disease in the U.S. was linked to a farm in Texas, though it appears to be the country's first home-grown case. The New York Timesreported that the animal was about 12 years old at the time of its death. It had spent theentirety of its life on the same Lone State ranch until it was taken to pet food plant Champion Pet Food, Inc. in Waco, Texas, where it died in November of 2004. The animal was a "downer" which pet food outfits often take since the USDA prohibits such cows for human consumption. Testing for disease is still mandatory, and meat from the animal did not enter the food supply, thanks to safeguards.

Photo by Flickr user MdenHoedt.

March 2006: Third Confirmed U.S. Case

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A cow in Alabama was the third confirmed case of mad cow in the U.S. CBS reported that USDA head veterinarian John Clifford assured the public that meat from the animal had not entered the food supply for people or animals. The animal was also a "downer," which led to it being euthanized and tested.

Photo by Flickr user Shan213.

February 2012: First Reported Cases of Mad Cow In Human Is False Alarm

Earlier this year, two reported cases of mad cow-related illness in Marin County, Calif., one fatal, turned out not to be linked to the disease. The scare, however, leaves Americans shaken.

April 2012: Fourth Confirmed U.S. Case