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It is with a sad heart that I report to you that today CWD was found in Pennsylvania. Following the common trend, it was initially detected in a captive deer facility in Adams County. A week ago we learned of the Big Buck Project that's occurring in Alabama. This is so dangerous to the future of deer hunting, and yet the creators of this project plan on following through with it. Folks, NOW is the time to make your voices heard. The only way that project is going to stop is by an act of the governor. Do you think we can make it happen? Today was a sad day for Pennsylvania deer hunters...let's prevent that from happening in Alabama!
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...that's too bad -
Let's stop deer farming everywhere!Comment
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how many wild deer have been reported to have the disease?
on another note bioguy, i heard today the deaths from EHD has topped the 8,000 mark in west and central MI.Comment
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I'm with WAM. Do away with ALL deer farming.
Unfortunately, with "bloodlines" selling for $20k to $30k PER HEAD, that probably won't happen anytime soon.
Since pen raised sheds aren't "sport killed", they can be mounted and sold openly on the market. What would you pay for a mounted head that scores 300 or so?Comment
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scratchgolf72 - No wild deer reported yet, but it's still early. I'm sure we'll find out in the weeks to come if it was spread to the wild herd.
EHD was terrible this year, but the good thing about EHD is that there is usually a break between epidemics. For CWD, once it's in the herd, there's not way to get rid of it...it's a sad day for PA deer hunters, especially the ones in the immediate affected area.Comment
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Just another example of our sick, spoiled culture wanting everything bigger, better, easier, etc. Deer racks aren't the only enhanced racks on display these days either. You want it bad, you get it bad...Comment
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If the captive deer have it,... the wild deer will soon. SAD. I hunt in pa. and am very concerned.Comment
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redfishunter - Lol, I really hope your being sarcastic...Comment
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Bioguy - Would it be feasible to have a veterinarian physically examine and test each buck for CWD or other communicable diseases before it is released into the wild?
That might be a good fallback position if efforts to halt the program are unsuccessful.
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99explorer - There is a live test for CWD, but it's not all that dependable, and the best test we have involves killing the animal. Even then there's still only a 90% detection rate, and even one CWD animal released into the wild is one too many. We also don't know all of the vectors of transmission. Saliva, feces, urine, and spinal fluid are all thought to be vectors. If we don't know how it spreads, then we don't know how to prevent it from spreading. I don't think semen has been investigated yet, and it's definitely not illegal to transport semen across state lines.
Even with the transport of live deer being illegal, it doesn't stop people from doing it. It's about as prolific as the drug trade, but there's less law enforcement. When there's big money to be made, the law tends to get pushed aside.Comment
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I suppose it is too much to hope that there could be a vaccine to inoculate the bucks that are being released. That would require a great deal of R&D money.Comment
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What is the treatment for chronic wasting disease?Comment
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It is so stupid to continue to allow this disease spread. Wait until some human gets infected, then the "mud" will hit the fan!Comment
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99explorer - CWD is not caused by a virus...see below for details.
Edward J. Palumbo - The most humane treatment is to put the animal down and end its suffering. There is currently no cure to CWD, and it's always fatal. It's caused by a prion, which is a malformed protein that replicates itself and destroys the brain. Prions are extremely difficult to destroy! In fact, anything short of complete incineration is pointless. They tolerate high and low pH, high heat, cold temperatures, prolonged environmental exposure and just about anything else that would kill viruses or bacteria.Comment
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