Six cattle died under mysterious circumstances at Nyege Village in Kavango West's Mpungu Constituency.

Veterinary officials are now investigating what could have caused the deaths in about an hour.

The samples were taken for laboratory tests to determine or rule out the possibility of a contagious animal disease.

The owner of the cattle, Festus Hamatwi, says the livestock never showed any clinical symptoms when they were brought back from pastures.

Hamatwi says a commotion at the crawl erupted after they saw cattle falling over, one after the other.

He says two of the cattle that fell over on the day recovered, with one still showing signs of illness.

The veterinary official, he says, advised against consuming the meat, urging them to burn the carcasses.

Authorities suspect anthrax, an animal disease that can kill without showing any clinical symptoms.