Nearly 50 cows have been found dead in Colorado, with an expert saying they could have died from the same sickness. In October 2022, numerous cattle were discovered dead near the town of Meeker in Colorado.
Officials were left dumbfounded, with Colorado Parks and Wildlife saying they could not confirm how the 41 cows died.
Some cattle, but not all, appeared to have injuries linked to wolves, the officials said.
However, no wolves had been detected in the surrounding areas, and some cattle had no injuries at all.
CPW said the deaths could have been caused not by wolves, but by “large canines.”
Now, Carter Niemeyer, wolf-predation expert and former US Department of Agriculture Wildlife Services district supervisor, has speculated on the cause of death.
He was supplied with documents on the incident by the Humane Society of the United States.
Niemeyer said that he saw no evidence of wolf-caused injuries on the dead cattle.
“I did not see any evidence of predation by wolves,” Niemeyer told the Humane Society. “I don’t really see any evidence of dog bites either.”
Instead, Niemeyer suggested these deaths may have been caused by brisket disease, a condition also known as high mountain disease that affects cattle in high-altitude environments and can occasionally cause heart failure.
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In this case, the cows had been living at an altitude of 9,200 feet, the Humane Society of the United States said in a press release.
They also appeared to die quite suddenly, all at once, indicating that they could all have become sick together. This cause of death however has not been confirmed.
Back in November, officials in the White River National Forest initially thought wolves were responsible.
Colorado Parks and Wildlife region manager Travis Black says teams have found no evidence that wolves were responsible.
“It’s perplexing,” Black said. “We’re scratching our heads a little bit. We don’t know exactly what has occurred up there.”
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