The "CWD is a HOAX" movement is building

[lastlight]

Threat to humans or not I wish you guys would top throwing away venison and just feed to your dogs. Such a waste.

 

[Wind Gypsy]

Threat to humans or not I wish you guys would top throwing away venison and just feed to your dogs. Such a waste.

Is there a setup to gift diseased meat to dog owners for folks without dogs?

 

[lastlight]

Is there a setup to gift diseased meat to dog owners for folks without dogs?

Not sure, I would just ask around town/friends. Chop it all up into stew meat. I recently put my dog down but I would cubed it and lightly sear it in cast iron a couple nights a week.

 

[88man]

How accurate is the CWD testing??

What are the thoughts when people are eating bear or lion meat in which the predator could have eaten hundreds of CWD positive animals?

Just for giggles>> Do we know more about global warming or CWD???

 

[Dougfirtree]

I couldn't help but think of this thread when I read this article. Similar strategy; trying to reduce the population of a desirable species, to reduce the population of a non-desirable species (I know CWD prions are not a species, but..)

MSN

 

[BrentD]

I couldn't help but think of this thread when I read this article. Similar strategy; trying to reduce the population of a desirable species, to reduce the population of a non-desirable species (I know CWD prions are not a species, but..)

MSN

Makes reasonable sense to me.

 

[Dougfirtree]

Makes reasonable sense to me.

Yes. I'm not overly optimistic about the long-term health of the moose herds around here either way, but it does make some sense.

 

[jimss]

Last time I checked the bear population in Colo was out of control. CWD has been around since 1980s' and we are all waiting for the sky to fall down!

 

[Dougfirtree]

Last time I checked the bear population in Colo was out of control. CWD has been around since 1980s' and we are all waiting for the sky to fall down!

Wait, bears!?

I don't know, maybe it wasn't cocaine after all...

 

[old270hunter]

Wait, bears!?

I don't know, maybe it wasn't cocaine after all...

During 3rd and 4th rifle season, I’ve never seen a bear. Saw a few in 2nd rifle season in 1 hunt unit I no longer have points to hunt. But CWD, I’ve seen exactly 2 deer with noticeable symptoms. I can also say I’ve noticed zero population differences in the 25 years I’ve hunted CWD units.

 

[Flatbrimmer]

I certainly believe there’s a correlation between unnatural gathering of deer or elk contributing to the spread of CWD. The area where there was animals I saw that look like they are infected, is PACKED with these “Pet” deer and they don’t leave. I’m sure that area is seeing a population INCREASE in mule deer. For now….

 

[shrapnel]

I am no biologist, but as a consumer of hunting and fishing I am concerned for the welfare of the resource.

Montana was in a tailspin over a decade ago about whirling disease in the trout streams in Montana. There was a whole network of scientists and biologists and other “ists” that came out of nowhere to study and determine the cause and if the spread of “Whirling Disease” was going to kill the entire trout population in Montana.

Now there is nothing being said, millions of dollars were thrown at it and today fishing is back to normal. I don’t even know if it was as bad as they forecast or if it was a natural cycle in fish evolution or if it was cured with all the attention it got.

I do know that lots of people spent and made lots of money fixing a problem that I’m not sure existed…

 

[Beignet]

I am no biologist, but as a consumer of hunting and fishing I am concerned for the welfare of the resource.

Montana was in a tailspin over a decade ago about whirling disease in the trout streams in Montana. There was a whole network of scientists and biologists and other “ists” that came out of nowhere to study and determine the cause and if the spread of “Whirling Disease” was going to kill the entire trout population in Montana.

Now there is nothing being said, millions of dollars were thrown at it and today fishing is back to normal. I don’t even know if it was as bad as they forecast or if it was a natural cycle in fish evolution or if it was cured with all the attention it got.

I do know that lots of people spent and made lots of money fixing a problem that I’m not sure existed…

Eh? Rock Creek became a brown trout fishery after having been a rainbow trout fishery because of whirling disease. Rainbows still haven’t reestablished since the outbreak in the 1990’s. I guess this doesn’t matter if “a trout is a trout” but it did absolutely have some long term effects on the watershed. One which hasn’t returned to the “normal” that it was before the outbreak.

 

[RyGuy]

Based on my limited knowledge about whirling disease, I would say that it would serve as an example of success by game and fish agencies, instead of an overreaction. My understanding is that certain strains of trout are resistant to whirling disease and so, switching to stocking with those particular strains of trout can reduce the prevalence or even remove it completely from a waterway. I imagine that the large sums of money and time were spent learning these facts and implementing them through selective breeding and stocking efforts.

I hope that one day we can talk about CWD as an afterthought. It will be a great success if one day someone can look back and wonder why such a big fuss was made, when deer populations are as good as ever before.

 

[Treeshark]

It will be a great success if one day someone can look back and wonder why such a big fuss was made, when deer populations are as good as ever before.

I think we are at that point in Wisconsin today.

Although instead of “wow, what a success!” it’s more of “that was really dumb, let’s not do that again.”

 

[Huntin' Fool]

It is bigger than us, we don't know that much, we can only impact at the margins.

Keeping big game herds a little under carrying capacity does seem to be a good plan though.

Not sure fish have a lot in common.

 

[shrapnel]

Eh? Rock Creek became a brown trout fishery after having been a rainbow trout fishery because of whirling disease. Rainbows still haven’t reestablished since the outbreak in the 1990’s. I guess this doesn’t matter if “a trout is a trout” but it did absolutely have some long term effects on the watershed. One which hasn’t returned to the “normal” that it was before the outbreak.

Check out the Madison river, it was the center for research and study. Much of what was contributed to whirling disease was attributed to the destruction of the reds on the upper Madison that were gorged during high spring run offs.

There is more to the story than just disease. I am not saying I have answers, but I do have questions. When is the last time you heard of the catastrophe of whirling disease in mainstream outdoor media or publications?

This in no way is a comment by me that CWD isn’t a threat, it is just an unknown and I am watching…

 

[3855WIN]

IDFG’s proposed responses include increasing the number of hunting tags available for antlered mule deer, adding antlerless mule deer hunting tags, extending the whitetail deer hunting season, and increasing the number of elk tags.

Idaho Fish and Game proposes hunting changes in response to Chronic Wasting Disease

Since five deer and one elk have tested positive for CWD in unit 14, IDFG has proposed several responses, and is taking public comment on them.

www.ktvb.com

 

[jimss]

Idaho may as well face the facts...CWD is coming to a neighborhood near you! CWD prions will be in the soil for years. Once you have CWD it will slowly but surely spread unless you kill every living deer and animal that may spread the prions. Culling projects or increasing tags isn't going to eliminate CWD or prevent it's spread.

Idaho can learn from the mistakes of Colo. It's been in Colo since the early 1980's. Culling projects don't work, increasing tags don't work, rut rifle season dates to kill off older age bucks doesn't work! If CWD is so horrible wouldn't you think the prions would continue to build each year in the soil and every deer would be dead? Well, it hasn't happened!

I live smack dab in the middle of where CWD first started in Colo in the 1980's. I've seen deer numbers decline but they have slowly but surely recovered from the original mass culling projects. The culling projects didn't prevent the spread and CWD is in just about every corner of Colo. CWD is no worse in the hot-bed where CWD all started than what it was 40 years ago. We've been waiting 40+ years and there has been 0 mass-die offs from CWD. In fact, winterkill and auto collisions have killed off way more deer in Colo than CWD!

Predators are a hunters best friend when it comes to CWD. They selectively kill CWD sick animals. We have plenty of bears, coyotes, and lions that selectively kill CWD weak and sick animals!

I don't think it's totally known, but my guess is there are resistant allele strains of CWD. In fact, increasing tag allotments and putting more hunting pressure on older age class bucks may actually make CWD worse! The best genetics in the herd are mature bucks that have endured extreme winters, disease, etc.

That's my 2 cents!