PRESS RELEASE – On Friday, April 27 at approximately 7:15 p.m., four CFIA agents and 2 security guards arrived at Montana Jones’ Hastings Ontario farm with an order for the destruction of 9 Shropshire sheep that remained on the farm after 31 sheep went missing earlier this month. They left two vehicles “guarding” the premises overnight. The CFIA inspectors returned Saturday, April 28 at 8:00 a.m., loaded up the 9 sheep, 8 of which were due to have lambs, and drove them approximately four hours to slaughter in Nepean.
The CFIA raid was in response to their claim that they found scrapie in a sheep that died on Jones’ farm on April 19th. “It was a sheep that was not actually on the CFIA destruction order and had a VRQ genotype CFIA say is not susceptible to scrapie.” she said. “She seemed to have been pining for its missing flockmates since they were stolen earlier this month.”
Jones said the CFIA vet in charge of the case had examined the ewe the day before it died. “Dr. Douglas MacLeod said she was in very good body condition, with no signs nor symptoms of scrapie. He agreed with me that she likely had toxemia, but did not offer treatment.”
“I told him she was going to die, that I thought I caught her toxemia too late…and could he please euthanize her and write up an order for her and thus I would at least get compensation and he would have the head and obex brain tissue to test,” said Jones. “He said she looked ‘very comfortable’.”
“The next morning she was dead.” said Jones. “CFIA has been waiting to say they have a positive…but I still don’t believe they have one yet.”
