CWD - Seeing is Believing

[DFS]

Colorado is ground zero because two researchers from CSU were research mad cow disease on elk. In a winter storm both researchers were killed in a car accident. The university didn't know what to do with the elk, so they just released them back into the wild.....CWD.

Is this a true story?

 

[Hunting Wife]

Is this a true story?

Killed in accident…yes. Released CWD positive animals? No.

 

[ClearCreek]

And, they were not "both researchers from CSU". At the time of their deaths both had lived and worked in Wyoming for some time.

ClearCreek

 

[Eric Albus]

And it was mule deer that they turned loose out of a pen that had been holding sheep…at least that’s the story I got from a biologist I know.

As to CWD. It’s real and it is here. It will either kill all the deer or it won’t. My thoughts, along with a biologist I know and trust, are let it run its course. If by over harvesting/ground zero hasn’t worked in other states/provinces, just wait and see if natural immunity With get us there. With ground zero we could very well kill the “golden deer/elk” with natural immunity. Manage mule deer for a 4 yr old age class of bucks and let nature run her course.

 

[mtmiller]

Is this a true story?

No.

 

[wytex]

Tom and Beth never turned any animals back into the wild from their pens. On occasion some have escaped from Sybille but they look for them and take them when that happens.
Animals that go into those pens do not come out alive.
They even put down the cattle they had studied for 20+ years that showed no signs of CWD or mad cow.

Tom and Beth were killed in an accident on 287 coming back from a vacation that was their first in many years.

 

[Derek44]

If. CWD is primarily transmitted directly from one infected specimen to another, but also spread (to some lesser extent) environmentally through soil and vegetation, why aren't more preventative measures being taken by Wildlife Agencies to limit cross-country contamination?

For example, a hunter shoots a deer in a known CWD area, but then takes the deer home without being tested (because it's not mandatory) and then disposes of some of the deer's body parts in his backyard where deer frequent. In doing so, did the hunter possibly pass CWD on to the local deer herd through soil contamination?

Colorado Parks and Wildlife goes to great lengths in trying to prevent the spread of Aquatic Nuisance Species from one waterway to another, but seemingly does very little to try and prevent hunters from spreading CWD around the Country. Is it not spread that way as easily as I'm imagining it could? Do other State Wildlife Agencies have policies regulating the transport and disposal of potentially CWD positive animals?

Really?!?!? You must not get out west much. Basically every western state has some form of carcass transport regulation. Most tailored to CWD transmission.

 

[Candiru]

In ND the Game and Fish put out a video on how to clean a deer with the gutless method. You can also now just take a picture of the deer after it has been tagged and a close-up of the tag. Everything but the meat and the ear or antler that the tag is on can stay where the animal fell.

 

[Candiru]

A quote from Dr Michael Osterholm with the U of MN center for infectious disease. They have been researching this for some time.

 

[Bluefunk]

Scary

 

[Eric Albus]

In ND the Game and Fish put out a video on how to clean a deer with the gutless method. You can also now just take a picture of the deer after it has been tagged and a close-up of the tag. Everything but the meat and the ear or antler that the tag is on can stay where the animal fell.

The problem with leaving animal where they fall is the prion is left “where it fell”, to infect other animals later. Personally I think carcass should be taken to landfill (when able) and disposed of.

 

[3855WIN]

News Release: Dec. 1, 2023: Chronic Wasting Disease Detected at Kerr Wildlife Management Area Captive Deer Research Facility - TPWD

 

[wytex]

They found 1 deer at Kerr and euthanized all the other deer in that pen, no other positives.

Interestingly, a 8 year old bull elk born and raise in Sybille was gored to death this year, he tested negative for cwd . Pretty much every cervid susceptible to cwd at Sybille dies from it except for the cow elk with the special gene and this bull elk. Be interesting to see if he had that same gene.

Wasn't going to get my mule deer buck tested this year but the spouse did it anyway, not happy. He was negative, also taken adjacent to Sybille, the ranch shares a fence with the research facility. Another mature buck that the area doesn't have came back negative. Getting tired of biologists telling us no mature bucks in this region and area because of cwd.

 

[BuzzH]

They found 1 deer at Kerr and euthanized all the other deer in that pen, no other positives.

Interestingly, a 8 year old bull elk born and raise in Sybille was gored to death this year, he tested negative for cwd . Pretty much every cervid susceptible to cwd at Sybille dies from it except for the cow elk with the special gene and this bull elk. Be interesting to see if he had that same gene.

Wasn't going to get my mule deer buck tested this year but the spouse did it anyway, not happy. He was negative, also taken adjacent to Sybille, the ranch shares a fence with the research facility. Another mature buck that the area doesn't have came back negative. Getting tired of biologists telling us no mature bucks in this region and area because of cwd.

Agree, and pushing late season mule deer buck hunts to kill mature bucks that they claim don't exist because of CWD.

Never have quite figured that one out.

 

[wytex]

We have 25 years of WG&F tooth aged deer over 4 1/2 and up to 10 1/2 yr old, bucks.
Got in when the lab first started tooth aging and they welcomed us for the data.
Waiting on my age for the buck I took this year however he looks to be 4 1/2 or so, we have been surprised with their ages before.

 

[whiskeydog]

MT unit 670...got my CWD test back yesterday. "suspect" which means they will use an additional test to confirm positive. Buck looked plenty healthy when I pulled the trigger. Glad it was my deer and not my 10-yr old's first one this year!

 

[Hunting Wife]

MT unit 670...got my CWD test back yesterday. "suspect" which means they will use an additional test to confirm positive. Buck looked plenty healthy when I pulled the trigger. Glad it was my deer and not my 10-yr old's first one this year!

Mine from 640 just came back positive too. Sob.