16 Cattle Dead in Cayo; BAHA Confirms Cause

Sixteen cattle are dead, and a farming family in El Pilar, Cayo, says the ongoing losses have left them searching for answers.

The latest deaths were discovered today when the family arrived at their ranch to carry out routine vaccinations. Three animals were found lifeless.

According to Adrian Balan, the deaths began in January and have continued week after week.

Balan says this is not a new issue for his family. “We have been having that issue years back with our family… every year we are losing animals,” he said.

He added that the cattle were not neglected and had been treated twice for tick fever. The herd was also vaccinated annually against blackleg and rabies.

“We put vaccines… black legs and rabies… we vaccinate every year, and we are still losing,” Balan said.

The family says they tested the water supply and conducted blood tests on the cattle, but results came back normal.

News 5 reached out to the Belize Agricultural Health Authority (BAHA). The Managing Director of BAHA, Zoe Zetina, confirmed that the authority has been “conducting surveillance in the affected areas for more than two months.” She said the deaths have been attributed to anaplasmosis, a disease transmitted through tick bites.

“It’s only contagious by tick bites, reusing needles that were used on sick animals,” Zetina added. “Farmers need to improve their tick management programs.”