100 Head of Cattle falling over dead!

Monday, March 3, 2003 7:55AM EST

Mystery surrounds animal deaths in Edgecombe County

The Associated Press

TARBORO, N.C. (AP) - Edgecombe County residents are keeping a close eye on pets and livestock as authorities try to determine why two dozen animals have turned up missing or dead.
"I'm on pins and needles," said the Rev. Selby Smith, a preacher and farmer. "Every morning I check on my cows. It's the first thing I do." Smith has watched one of his 40 cows and his squirrel dog, Brownie, die for no apparent reason during the past several weeks. Other cows and nearby dogs appear fine, he said.

The toll includes hunting dogs, black labs and house cats.

James R. Baluss, director of health services in Edgecombe County, said there was no indication of anything in the air, water or soil that could harm animals - or humans. A dog and two cats from the Fillmore Road area appeared to have died from ingesting a toxic substance, he said. The carcasses had deteriorated so that testing for the poison was difficult.

Baluss could not say whether the animals ate something by accident or were intentionally poisoned. He said it will be a law-enforcement matter, not health or environmental, if there is evidence of criminal action. Investigating was difficult because accounts of missing or dead animals go back as far as last April, he said.

Residents of the area about six miles west of Tarboro reported that 17 dogs were missing, remains of one were found, and that nine cats were missing and remains of two were found.

Jim Kittrell, veterinary medical officer for the state Department of Agriculture, said laboratory tests on a cat carcass from Edgecombe County did not indicate the presence of pesticides or antifreeze, substances often connected to animal deaths. He said additional tests will be done, but the deteriorated condition of the carcass might prevent definitive results.

"The carcass was days old and decomposed," he said. Kittrell said residents need to report sick or recently dead animals promptly.

Baluss said cattle can die from eating hay contaminated with high levels of nitrates because of last summer's drought. Agriculture officials say nitrate builds up in corn, grasses and sorghum if there isn't enough rain to dilute fertilizer applied early in the season. Cud-chewing animals such as cows, sheep and goats are particularly imperiled.

Information from: News & Observer

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