The German government decided Wednesday to slaughter up to 400,000 head of cattle as part of the European Union's efforts to overcome the crisis of the mad cow disease. To include the cost in destroying fodder made of animal parts, which is suspected of being the cause for the BSE disease, the total bill for Germany in tackling the crisis is estimated at 2.1 billion DM (US$995 million), including 500 million DM (US$237 million) as additional payment for EU-wide efforts.