Progressive spinal myelinopathy in Murray Grey cattle

We wish to report the occurrence in New Zealand of a progressive spinal myelinopathy, recently described in beef cattle in Western Australia. The two cases we have seen came from the same pedigree Murray Grey herd. Within this herd there is a history of one or two steers developing a progressive weakness of the hindquarters each year. Ultimately these animals are destroyed or die from misadventure. Hind limb ataxia is first noticed in affected animals at 6-9 months of age, and these animals are generally in poorer condition and have paler hair colour than their herd mates. At the time the two animals we investigated were necropsied, both had only a mild hind limb ataxia which did not seriously impair locomotor function…