Ten Year Old Cow Tests Positive for BSE

Well, it shouldn't be surprising, but it is sad. What I'm waiting for is to see cows younger testing positive. If that happens, we're in trouble. If that happens, those "interlocking safeguards" the Department of Agriculture keeps talking about aren't working.

I talked to Patrick Singh today, his daughter Charlene died of vCJD in June 2004. I interviewed him last year in June (2005) at the one-year anniversary of Charlene's passing. This happened to coincide with the discovery of cow #2. Today's cow was cow #3. Cow #1 to test positive for BSE in the U.S. was December of 2003. I told my news director at the time in June 2005 there would be more cows to test positive. I passed Patrick's info on to my sister station KTAR this evening so they can interview him. I hope they do.

Patrick and I both feel the news today is sad. People who lost loved ones to sporadic CJD in this country don't need the insult added to the injury. First, no on can tell them how their loved ones contracted CJD. Second, they have to watch this cow come up positive today and wonder about the safety of what they are eating. You can tell people sporadic isn't from BSE until the cows come home, but they don't believe it. Patrick has the confirmation that his daughter died from eating infected meat. I have the confirmation that my mother did not die from infected meat because she died of a genetic mutation of CJD. But there are those who bear the frustration of not knowing why. And it has to be scary to see cow #3 pop up today for them.