Pakistan: Imported sheep with ORF ordered destroyed; tests revealed they were free of infectious disease

[Shiloh]

Source: http://tribune.com.pk/story/437807/...-officials-order-culling-of-australian-sheep/


The Express Tribune

Diseased animals: Livestock officials order culling of Australian sheep
By Kashif Hussain
Published: September 17, 2012


KARACHI:

Livestock authorities have ordered the culling of 21,268 sheep after laboratory tests confirmed that the animals were carrying the contagious ORF virus that causes skin diseases, officials said on Sunday.

Bahrain originally imported the sheep from Australia but refused to accept them after finding they were infected, according to Haleem Adil Shaikh, an adviser to provincial chief minister. However, a local importer brought these sheep to Pakistan.

The sheep carry a virus that Pakistan is thus far protected from, according to an emergency letter dispatched to the federal food and security ministry, provincial health ministry, administrator and Karachi commissioner and other relevant departments...

 

[Pathfinder]

Re: Pakistan: Imported sheep with ORF ordered destroyed

Re: Pakistan: Imported sheep with ORF ordered destroyed

WA Premier Warns of Loss of Live Sheep Export Trade in Middle East If Pakistan Problem Remains Unresolved

By Vittorio Hernandez | September 24, 2012 9:58 AM EST

Western Australia (WA) Premier Colin Barnet warned on Sunday that the country risks losing the live sheep export trade in the Middle East unless the problem with 21,000 Aussie sheep under threat of culling in Pakistan is resolved soon.

Mr Barnett pointed out countries with lower animal welfare standards could fill in the gap left vacant by Australia after Canberra halted all sheep export due to the problem with Pakistan which claimed the animals are diseased.

Bahrain initially rejected the shipment, but Pakistan agreed to accept the export only to reverse its decision and even ordered the killing of the flock due to the presence of salmonella bacteria and actinomyces in the sheep.
WA produces about three-fifths of Australian's live sheep export. Sheep farmers are affected by the halt in the issuance of permits last week.

Australia's Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry questioned the lab test performed on the sheep, while an independent laboratory based in the United Arab Emirates declared the animals disease free.

More...
http://au.ibtimes.com/articles/387203/20120924/wa-premier-warns-loss-live-sheep-export.htm

 

[Pathfinder]

Re: Pakistan: Imported sheep with ORF ordered destroyed

Re: Pakistan: Imported sheep with ORF ordered destroyed

Tests confirm Australian sheep don't have anthrax, but Pakistani culling continues

Date September 25, 2012
Richard Willingham

CLAIMS that Australian sheep are riddled with disease and unfit for human consumption have been slapped down again by independent tests in Pakistan.

Over the weekend, allegations were levelled that the Australian sheep in a Karachi feedlot were infected with anthrax and that a culling program had to continue.

The livestock have already been accused of having disease, including salmonella, by local authorities despite the Australian and Pakistan governments giving the animals a clean bill of health.

The importer has sought an injunction in the local court which was upheld again after independent testing found no traces of anthrax.

The injunction has not stopped sporadic culling, with some estimates saying up to 7000, of the 21,000-strong consignment had already been killed.

Read more: http://www.smh.com.au/environment/a...g-continues-20120924-26hgf.html#ixzz27OwkNGGX

 

[Shiloh]

Re: Pakistan: Imported sheep with ORF ordered destroyed; tests revealed they were free of infectious disease

Source: http://au.news.yahoo.com/latest/a/-...tan-clears-stranded-sheep-of-health-problems/

Pakistan clears stranded sheep of health problems
By Tom Nightingale, ABC October 13, 2012, 11:51 am

Tests show thousands of Australian sheep were free of infectious diseases when they were inhumanely killed in Pakistan, with the remaining sheep now likely be slaughtered for human consumption.

Karachi livestock bosses culled between 7,000 and 10,000 sheep because they thought the sheep had viruses like salmonella and anthrax.

Some were buried alive or clubbed to death before a court order halted the cull.

For the past few weeks, the remaining sheep have been in holding pens in Pakistan and their fate has been unclear.

British tests now show that the sheep are free of infectious diseases.

It is still uncertain what will happen to the stranded sheep, but WA-based exporter Wellard says it is likely they will be killed for human consumption...