A 48-month-old cow that died last week has been confirmed as having had mad cow disease, making it the nation's 14th case, the Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries Ministry said Thursday.
The cow was born at a farm in Shikaoi, Hokkaido, in October 2000, and was checked for mad cow disease after it died, the ministry said.
The cow was found dead on Oct. 8 at the farm. The dead cow was found with its head submerged in a river. Officials said it probably died of suffocation.
It is the second case since March in which the disease, formally known as bovine spongiform encephalopathy, has been confirmed in a cow that died rather than having been slaughtered, the ministry said.