Yesterday, August 2 a federal Judge ruled that that the US Dept. of Agric. has right to seize and destroy nearly 400 imported Belgian sheep from 3 Vermont farms. The owners of one farm, Three Shepherds Farm that make sheep milk cheese, have been asking for independent confirmation and are challenging the validity of the test results which were done at a lab on Staten Island which has a questionable reputation. The sheep in question have been carefully monitored, and were never exposed to feed that could cause mad cow disease. Most of the sheep were born here from the original ones imported over 4 years ago.From what I can find they have until August 7 to appeal. Meantime Federal trucks are sitting outside the farm waiting to seize the sheep. The family have supporter keeping a 24 hour vigil and have even taken the family dogs away for safe keeping in case federal authorities get overzealous and decide all animals on the farm must be killed. Whats really disturbing to me is that this particular farm, owned by Larry and Linda Faillice, did not have any of the original tested sheep. Those were from a related flock in another area of Vermont. What harm would it be for the USDA to quarantine the farm, not allow any animals to leave and retest the sheep. They would pose no risk to consumers in quarantine. This will ultimately affect all of us sheep producers, and down the road you goat producers as well. Look at website www. mad-cow.org for more information. The fate of these sheep are in my prayers. We could be next!

-- Kate Henderson (sheeplady@catskill.net), August 02, 2000

Answers

There is some school of thought that "Mad Cow Disease" is not caused by animal parts in the feed, but by other causes in the environment.

The Weston A. Price Foundation has reason to believe it is not. Read the book review at http://www.WestonAPrice.org/deadly_feasts.html

-- R. (thor610@yahoo.com), August 02, 2000.

Kate, my prayers are with the farmers, the sheep and all of us. This sounds really nasty and I am sick to hear about it. Please keep us posted. Thank you.

-- sheepish (rborgo@gte.net), August 02, 2000.

I fell very sad for these poor animals and their owners. In the paper it showed a young girl carrying a young lamb to the USDA truck. That picture bring me to tears when I think of it. I pray thatt no harm will be done to these anima

-- Dorien Z. Rowe (LightningStorm88@aol.com), March 26, 2001.