450 Calves to Be Killed

U.S. agriculture officials have decided to kill 450 calves in a Washington state herd that includes an offspring of the cow diagnosed with mad cow disease.

W. Ron DeHaven, the Department of Agriculture’s chief veterinarian, said Monday that the calves would be slaughtered this week at an undisclosed facility that is not being used.

The herd that is to be destroyed is one of three under quarantine in Washington because of ties to the infected cow, a 6 1/2-year-old Holstein.

Officials decided to kill all the calves in the Sunnyside, Wash., herd because they cannot determine which one was born by the infected cow. The calves range in age from one month to several months.

The USDA will not submit the calves’ brains for testing for bovine spongiform encephalopathy, or mad cow disease, because the illness does not usually show up in young animals, DeHaven said. The disease can incubate for up to five years.