ABU DHABI // Fifteen camels died in the Western Region after eating grass contaminated with pesticides while grazing along a road on a farm.
The Abu Dhabi Food Control Authority announced that the camels had died from eating roadside grass and not from the feed distributed to farmers.
Owners reported the sudden deaths of the camels, which were worth about Dh3.5 million, said Aletihad, the Arabic-language sister paper of The National.
The camels showed signs of weakness, atrophy, fatigue and loss of appetite prior to their deaths.
Samples taken from the camels revealed the cause.
Meanwhile, more than 60 ailing camels were gradually improving with treatment, said Mubarak Al Atash Al Masoori, one of the camel owners. He called on people who collected grass to feed to camels to first make sure the grass had not been treated with pesticides.
The food control authority said it was responsible for only the feed it distributed, which was subject to quality controls to ensure it contained all the nutrition that camels needed.
It reminded breeders to buy feed from trusted sources to ensure the safety of the animals, and said warehouses where feed was kept should be regularly cleaned and kept free of insects.
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