CWD-infected elk meat sold
- Thread starter Oak
- Start date
elk_hunter
Active member
Anyone on here worried about CWD infested meat? Like worried enough not to eat it? Or have your animal tested prior to consumption? I'm curious what you guys think.
shoots-straight
Well-known member
The Montana DFW&P's are testing thousands of animals in the state to see if it crops up. So far so good. IF the rest of the intermountain states would ban game farms it would go a long ways to insure no new outbreaks of the disease.
Though I am far from a fan of game farms, I'll have to politely disagree with that statement. The bug is out in wild populations, therefore it's just a matter of time before many/most populations of that species have some incidence of the disease.
I had animals tested when I lived in Ft Collins and hunted in the area with a high rate of infection. I also had them tested when the DOW was asking for volunteer samples statewide and were paying for it.
The areas I hunt now have infection rates of around 1% or CWD has not been found at all. I don't test, and am not too worried about it. I think I would still test if I was hunting in a high infection rate area. One reason is that none of my family would eat the meat if I didn't.
The areas I hunt now have infection rates of around 1% or CWD has not been found at all. I don't test, and am not too worried about it. I think I would still test if I was hunting in a high infection rate area. One reason is that none of my family would eat the meat if I didn't.
Not able to read this yet, but for those with some time, here is info from 2008.
CWD Update 93
December 29, 2008
State and Provincial Updates
South Dakota
The following was provided by Steve Griffin, South Dakota Game, Fish, and Parks:
In the South Dakota CWD Surveillance period of July 1, 2008 to December 3, 2008, a total of 1,470 samples have been collected for CWD surveillance. Breakdown of sampling is as follows:
292 elk sampled--277 results returned as NOT Positive--8 results pending (7 POSITIVE ELK FOUND)
319 mule deer sampled--184 results returned as NOT Positive--130 results pending (5 POSITIVE MD FOUND)
859 white-tailed deer--487 results returned as NOT Positive--368 results pending (4 POSITIVE WT FOUND)
Below is a listing of the Positive cervids that have been found in South Dakota during the surveillance period of July 1, 2008 to December 3, 2008.
1. Elk female from Wind Cave National Park in Custer County. (Sick/Surveillance)
2. Elk female from Unit H3B in Custer County. (Hunter Harvest)
3. Elk male from Unit H3A in Custer County. (Hunter Harvest)
4. Elk female from Wind Cave National Park in Custer County. (Sick/Surveillance)
5. Elk male from Unit H3A in Custer County. (Hunter Harvest)
6. White-tailed female from Unit BD4 in CusterCounty. (Sick/Surveillance)
7. Elk female from Unit H3C in Fall River County. (Hunter Harvest)
8. Elk female from Wind Cave National Park in Custer County. (Sick Surveillance)
9. White-tailed female from Unit 27A in Custer County. (Hunter Harvest
10. Mule deer male from Unit 27B in Fall River County. (Hunter Harvest)
11. Mule deer female from Unit 21B in Custer County. (Hunter Harvest)
12. White-tailed female from Unit 27B in Fall River County. (Hunter Harvest)
13. White-tailed male from Unit BD3 in Pennington County. (Sick/Surveillance)
14. Mule deer male from Unit 27B in Fall River County. (Hunter Harvest)
15. Mule deer female from Unit 27B in Fall River County. (Hunter Harvest)
16. Mule deer female from Unit 21B in Custer County. (Hunter Harvest)
In Summary:
South Dakota is reporting a total of 16 positive cervids (7 elk, 9 deer) in the testing period of July 1, 2008 to December 3, 2008.
To date, South Dakota has found 93 cases of CWD (63 deer and 30 elk) in free ranging deer and elk since testing began in 1997. Wind Cave National Park accounts for 23 of these animals (15 elk, 8 deer). Three elk and 1 deer have been found in Custer State Park. A total of 18,873 wild deer and elk have been tested for CWD since 1997.
West Virginia:
The following was excerpted from a press release issued by the West Virginia DNR on December 22, 2008:
Five Additional Deer Test Positive for Chronic Wasting Disease in Hampshire County, West Virginia
Preliminary test results indicate the Chronic Wasting Disease (CWD) agent was present in five hunter-harvested deer collected in Hampshire County during the 2008 deer firearms hunting season.
“As part of our agency’s ongoing and intensive CWD monitoring effort, samples were collected from 1,355 hunter-harvested deer brought to game checking stations in Hampshire County and one station near the southern Hampshire County line in Hardy County,” noted Frank Jezioro, director for the West Virginia Division of Natural Resources (DNR).
The five CWD positive deer included one 4.5 year-old doe, two 2.5 year-old bucks, one 4.5 year-old buck and one 1.5 year-old buck. All five of the latest positive deer were harvested within the Hampshire County CWD Containment Area (i.e., that portion of Hampshire County located North of U.S. Route 50). However, the CWD agent previously has been detected outside the containment area but still within Hampshire County. The area in Hampshire County appears to continue to expand as one of the most recent infected deer was approximately five miles northeast of any previous known infected deer location.
CWD has now been detected in a total of 37 deer in Hampshire County (i.e., two road-killed deer - one in 2005 and one in 2008, four deer collected by the DNR in 2005, five deer collected by the DNR in 2006, one hunter-harvest deer taken during the 2006 deer season, three deer collected by the DNR in 2007, six hunter-harvested deer taken during the 2007 deer season, 11 deer collected by the DNR in 2008, and five hunter-harvested deer taken during the 2008 deer season). The DNR will continue to update management actions designed to control the spread of this disease, prevent further introduction of the disease, and possibly eliminate the disease from the state as information from deer testing within West Virginia is gathered and scientists across the country provide more information on how to combat CWD in white-tailed deer.
The entire press release can be viewed at: http://www.wvdnr.gov/2008news/08news202.shtm.
Wisconsin:
CWD was detected in October 2008 on a captive cervid operation in Portage County (CWD Update 92). The facility was subsequently depopulated and an additional deer from the facility tested positive. A press release regarding this facility was issued on 12/17/208 by the Wisconsin Department of Agriculture, Trade and Consumer Protection and can be viewed at this link: http://www.datcp.state.wi.us/press_release/result.jsp?prid=2259.
CWD was detected in another captive cervid operation in Wisconsin in December 2008. This facility is in Jefferson County and is the second facility with CWD detected in the state this year. A press release regarding this facility was issued on 12/19/208 by the Wisconsin Department of Agriculture, Trade and Consumer Protection and can be viewed at this link: http://www.datcp.state.wi.us/press_release/result.jsp?prid=2262.
Wyoming
In October, 2008, Wyoming Game & Fish Department announced that a three-year-old female moose from far western Wyoming (Star Valley) tested positive for Chronic Wasting Disease. The press release regarding this detection can be viewed at: http://gf.state.wy.us/services/news/pressreleases/08/10/17/081017_1.asp.
CWD has been detected in several new hunt areas in Wyoming this year:
- Deer Hunt Area 27 (Southwest of Lake DeSmet)
- Deer Hunt Area 2 (north of Sundance)
- Elk Hunt Area 117 (near Sundance),
- Elk Hunt Area 19 (South of Casper).
Links to press releases concerning these new areas can be viewed at: http://gf.state.wy.us/services/education/cwd/index.asp.
Meeting Announcement (reminder)
The Third International CWD Symposium will be held July 22-24, 2009 in Park City, Utah. Information regarding the symposium, including registration, lodging, and the first Call for Papers, can be viewed at http://www.regonline.com/cwd_symposium. The deadline for abstract submission is February 20, 2009. For additional information contact Leslie McFarlane, Utah Division of Wildlife Resources, at [email protected].
Recent Publications
The following article was published last week by PLOS One. The article documents a mule deer population with high CWD prevalence, high risk of CWD infection, and dramatically lowered (disease-associated) survival. The entire article is available at http://www.plosone.org/article/info:doi/10.1371/journal.pone.0004019. I urge all to read this article as it is the first publication I am aware of that links CWD with population decline: “Our findings provide compelling evidence that prion epidemics can affect mule deer population dynamics locally….”
Lions and Prions and Deer Demise
Michael W. Miller, Heather M. Swanson, Lisa L. Wolfe, Fred G. Quartarone, Sherri L. Huwer, Charles H. Southwick and Paul M. Lukacs
PLoS ONE 3(12): e4019. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0004019.
Abstract
Background: Contagious prion diseases – scrapie of sheep and chronic wasting disease of several species in the deer family – give rise to epidemics that seem capable of compromising host population viability. Despite this prospect, the ecological consequences of prion disease epidemics in natural populations have received little consideration.
Methodology/Principal Findings: Using a cohort study design, we found that prion infection dramatically lowered survival of free-ranging adult (>2-year-old) mule deer (Odocoileus hemionus): estimated average life expectancy was 5.2 additional years for uninfected deer but only 1.6 additional years for infected deer. Prion infection also increased nearly fourfold the rate of mountain lions (Puma concolor) preying on deer, suggesting that epidemics may alter predator–prey dynamics by facilitating hunting success. Despite selective predation, about one fourth of the adult deer we sampled were infected. High prevalence and low survival of infected deer provided a plausible explanation for the marked decline in this deer population since the 1980s.
Conclusion: Remarkably high infection rates sustained in the face of intense predation show that even seemingly complete ecosystems may offer little resistance to the spread and persistence of contagious prion diseases. Moreover, the depression of infected populations may lead to local imbalances in food webs and nutrient cycling in ecosystems in which deer are important herbivores.
http://www.plosone.org/article/info:doi/10.1371/journal.pone.0004019.
CWD Update 93
December 29, 2008
State and Provincial Updates
South Dakota
The following was provided by Steve Griffin, South Dakota Game, Fish, and Parks:
In the South Dakota CWD Surveillance period of July 1, 2008 to December 3, 2008, a total of 1,470 samples have been collected for CWD surveillance. Breakdown of sampling is as follows:
292 elk sampled--277 results returned as NOT Positive--8 results pending (7 POSITIVE ELK FOUND)
319 mule deer sampled--184 results returned as NOT Positive--130 results pending (5 POSITIVE MD FOUND)
859 white-tailed deer--487 results returned as NOT Positive--368 results pending (4 POSITIVE WT FOUND)
Below is a listing of the Positive cervids that have been found in South Dakota during the surveillance period of July 1, 2008 to December 3, 2008.
1. Elk female from Wind Cave National Park in Custer County. (Sick/Surveillance)
2. Elk female from Unit H3B in Custer County. (Hunter Harvest)
3. Elk male from Unit H3A in Custer County. (Hunter Harvest)
4. Elk female from Wind Cave National Park in Custer County. (Sick/Surveillance)
5. Elk male from Unit H3A in Custer County. (Hunter Harvest)
6. White-tailed female from Unit BD4 in CusterCounty. (Sick/Surveillance)
7. Elk female from Unit H3C in Fall River County. (Hunter Harvest)
8. Elk female from Wind Cave National Park in Custer County. (Sick Surveillance)
9. White-tailed female from Unit 27A in Custer County. (Hunter Harvest
10. Mule deer male from Unit 27B in Fall River County. (Hunter Harvest)
11. Mule deer female from Unit 21B in Custer County. (Hunter Harvest)
12. White-tailed female from Unit 27B in Fall River County. (Hunter Harvest)
13. White-tailed male from Unit BD3 in Pennington County. (Sick/Surveillance)
14. Mule deer male from Unit 27B in Fall River County. (Hunter Harvest)
15. Mule deer female from Unit 27B in Fall River County. (Hunter Harvest)
16. Mule deer female from Unit 21B in Custer County. (Hunter Harvest)
In Summary:
South Dakota is reporting a total of 16 positive cervids (7 elk, 9 deer) in the testing period of July 1, 2008 to December 3, 2008.
To date, South Dakota has found 93 cases of CWD (63 deer and 30 elk) in free ranging deer and elk since testing began in 1997. Wind Cave National Park accounts for 23 of these animals (15 elk, 8 deer). Three elk and 1 deer have been found in Custer State Park. A total of 18,873 wild deer and elk have been tested for CWD since 1997.
West Virginia:
The following was excerpted from a press release issued by the West Virginia DNR on December 22, 2008:
Five Additional Deer Test Positive for Chronic Wasting Disease in Hampshire County, West Virginia
Preliminary test results indicate the Chronic Wasting Disease (CWD) agent was present in five hunter-harvested deer collected in Hampshire County during the 2008 deer firearms hunting season.
“As part of our agency’s ongoing and intensive CWD monitoring effort, samples were collected from 1,355 hunter-harvested deer brought to game checking stations in Hampshire County and one station near the southern Hampshire County line in Hardy County,” noted Frank Jezioro, director for the West Virginia Division of Natural Resources (DNR).
The five CWD positive deer included one 4.5 year-old doe, two 2.5 year-old bucks, one 4.5 year-old buck and one 1.5 year-old buck. All five of the latest positive deer were harvested within the Hampshire County CWD Containment Area (i.e., that portion of Hampshire County located North of U.S. Route 50). However, the CWD agent previously has been detected outside the containment area but still within Hampshire County. The area in Hampshire County appears to continue to expand as one of the most recent infected deer was approximately five miles northeast of any previous known infected deer location.
CWD has now been detected in a total of 37 deer in Hampshire County (i.e., two road-killed deer - one in 2005 and one in 2008, four deer collected by the DNR in 2005, five deer collected by the DNR in 2006, one hunter-harvest deer taken during the 2006 deer season, three deer collected by the DNR in 2007, six hunter-harvested deer taken during the 2007 deer season, 11 deer collected by the DNR in 2008, and five hunter-harvested deer taken during the 2008 deer season). The DNR will continue to update management actions designed to control the spread of this disease, prevent further introduction of the disease, and possibly eliminate the disease from the state as information from deer testing within West Virginia is gathered and scientists across the country provide more information on how to combat CWD in white-tailed deer.
The entire press release can be viewed at: http://www.wvdnr.gov/2008news/08news202.shtm.
Wisconsin:
CWD was detected in October 2008 on a captive cervid operation in Portage County (CWD Update 92). The facility was subsequently depopulated and an additional deer from the facility tested positive. A press release regarding this facility was issued on 12/17/208 by the Wisconsin Department of Agriculture, Trade and Consumer Protection and can be viewed at this link: http://www.datcp.state.wi.us/press_release/result.jsp?prid=2259.
CWD was detected in another captive cervid operation in Wisconsin in December 2008. This facility is in Jefferson County and is the second facility with CWD detected in the state this year. A press release regarding this facility was issued on 12/19/208 by the Wisconsin Department of Agriculture, Trade and Consumer Protection and can be viewed at this link: http://www.datcp.state.wi.us/press_release/result.jsp?prid=2262.
Wyoming
In October, 2008, Wyoming Game & Fish Department announced that a three-year-old female moose from far western Wyoming (Star Valley) tested positive for Chronic Wasting Disease. The press release regarding this detection can be viewed at: http://gf.state.wy.us/services/news/pressreleases/08/10/17/081017_1.asp.
CWD has been detected in several new hunt areas in Wyoming this year:
- Deer Hunt Area 27 (Southwest of Lake DeSmet)
- Deer Hunt Area 2 (north of Sundance)
- Elk Hunt Area 117 (near Sundance),
- Elk Hunt Area 19 (South of Casper).
Links to press releases concerning these new areas can be viewed at: http://gf.state.wy.us/services/education/cwd/index.asp.
Meeting Announcement (reminder)
The Third International CWD Symposium will be held July 22-24, 2009 in Park City, Utah. Information regarding the symposium, including registration, lodging, and the first Call for Papers, can be viewed at http://www.regonline.com/cwd_symposium. The deadline for abstract submission is February 20, 2009. For additional information contact Leslie McFarlane, Utah Division of Wildlife Resources, at [email protected].
Recent Publications
The following article was published last week by PLOS One. The article documents a mule deer population with high CWD prevalence, high risk of CWD infection, and dramatically lowered (disease-associated) survival. The entire article is available at http://www.plosone.org/article/info:doi/10.1371/journal.pone.0004019. I urge all to read this article as it is the first publication I am aware of that links CWD with population decline: “Our findings provide compelling evidence that prion epidemics can affect mule deer population dynamics locally….”
Lions and Prions and Deer Demise
Michael W. Miller, Heather M. Swanson, Lisa L. Wolfe, Fred G. Quartarone, Sherri L. Huwer, Charles H. Southwick and Paul M. Lukacs
PLoS ONE 3(12): e4019. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0004019.
Abstract
Background: Contagious prion diseases – scrapie of sheep and chronic wasting disease of several species in the deer family – give rise to epidemics that seem capable of compromising host population viability. Despite this prospect, the ecological consequences of prion disease epidemics in natural populations have received little consideration.
Methodology/Principal Findings: Using a cohort study design, we found that prion infection dramatically lowered survival of free-ranging adult (>2-year-old) mule deer (Odocoileus hemionus): estimated average life expectancy was 5.2 additional years for uninfected deer but only 1.6 additional years for infected deer. Prion infection also increased nearly fourfold the rate of mountain lions (Puma concolor) preying on deer, suggesting that epidemics may alter predator–prey dynamics by facilitating hunting success. Despite selective predation, about one fourth of the adult deer we sampled were infected. High prevalence and low survival of infected deer provided a plausible explanation for the marked decline in this deer population since the 1980s.
Conclusion: Remarkably high infection rates sustained in the face of intense predation show that even seemingly complete ecosystems may offer little resistance to the spread and persistence of contagious prion diseases. Moreover, the depression of infected populations may lead to local imbalances in food webs and nutrient cycling in ecosystems in which deer are important herbivores.
http://www.plosone.org/article/info:doi/10.1371/journal.pone.0004019.
