Chronic Wasting Disease Management Links:
 

Chronic Wasting Disease Fact Sheet

This fact sheet about Chronic Wasting Disease (CWD) was prepared by Texas Parks and Wildlife Department (TPWD) and by Texas Animal Health Commission (TAHC) and is being shared to help answer questions about this wasting disease of deer and elk.

What is Chronic Wasting Disease (CWD)?

CWD is an untreatable, fatal neurological (brain and nervous system) disease found in deer and elk in some geographic locations in North America. The disease belongs to a family of diseases known as Transmissible Spongiform Encephalopathies (TSE) or prion diseases. The disease attacks the brain and neural tissue of infected deer and elk. While CWD is similar to Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathy (BSE or "mad cow disease") in cattle and scrapie in sheep and goats, there is no known relationship between CWD and any other TSE of animals or people.

How does it spread?

It is not known exactly how CWD is spread from animal to animal. It is believed that the agent responsible for the disease may be spread both directly (animal-to-animal contact) and indirectly (soil or other surface to animal). It is known that transmission can occur between animals and that animals held in contaminated facilities can contract the disease. It is thought that the most common mode of transmission from an infected animal is via saliva, feces and urine.

Where has it been found?

CWD is known to infect free-ranging deer and elk in areas of Colorado, Wyoming, Nebraska, South Dakota, Utah, New Mexico, Wisconsin, Illinois, New York, West Virginia, and Saskatchewan. It has been diagnosed in deer and elk in game ranches in Colorado, Nebraska, South Dakota, Montana, Wisconsin, Oklahoma, Kansas, New York, and in the Canadian provinces of Alberta and Saskatchewan.

TPWD has been conducting surveys of hunter-kill animals since 2002 and has collected more than 7300 samples (as of 31 August 2005). In total, there have been over 9400 samples, both hunter-kill and private samples, tested in Texas to date, and no positives have been found.

Is it dangerous to humans?

Epidemiologists with the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta, Georgia, and epidemiologists at the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment have studied CWD and found no evidence that CWD poses a serious risk to humans or domestic animals. Over 16 years of monitoring in the affected area in Colorado has found no similar disease in people or cattle living there. The World Health Organization (WHO) has likewise said that there is no scientific evidence that CWD can infect humans. However, as a precaution, the WHO also says that no part of a deer or elk with evidence of CWD should be consumed by people or other animals.

What precautions should hunters take?

Health officials advise hunters not to consume meat from animals known to be infected with the disease. Boning out meat is recommended. In addition, they suggest hunters take simple precautions such as wearing latex gloves when field dressing carcasses, minimize handling of brain and spinal tissues, wash hands and instruments thoroughly after field dressing is completed, avoid consuming brain, spinal cord, eyes, spleen, tonsils and lymph nodes of harvested animals and, finally, request that your animal is processed individually, without meat from other animals being added to meat from your animal.

How can you tell if a deer has CWD?

Because the brain is the primary organ affected by the disease, infected animals begin to lose bodily functions and display abnormal behavior, such as staggering or standing with very poor posture. Animals may have an exaggerated wide posture, or may carry the head and ears lowered. Infected animals become very emaciated (thus "wasting" disease) and will appear in very poor body condition. Infected animals will also often stand near water and will consume large amounts of water. Drooling or excessive salivation may be apparent.

The TAHC definition of a clinical profile for CWD is: Any deer or elk 16 months of age or older that is emaciated and exhibits some combination of clinical signs including abnormal behavior, increased salivation, tremors, stumbling, incoordination, difficulty in swallowing and excessive thirst and urination.

What should I do if I see a deer that shows symptoms of CWD?

Accurately document the location of the animal and immediately contact the nearest TPWD Wildlife Division or Law Enforcement Division office or call TPWD headquarters in Austin toll-free at (800) 892-1112 and enter 5 for wildlife and 1 for general wildlife information. Or contact TAHC toll-free at (800) 550-8242. Do not attempt to touch, disturb, kill or remove the animal.

Can I have deer venison tested?

Deer "venison" cannot be tested - only brain and neural and lymph node tissues can be tested to detect the presence of CWD. Texas Veterinary Medical Diagnostic Laboratory (TVMDL) can test appropriate samples for CWD at owner's expense. If you wish to have your harvested animal tested, please DO NOT freeze the head. The brain sample must be taken soon after harvest. The entire head (it is acceptable to remove the antlers and the top of the skull) may be shipped chilled overnight in a water-tight container. It is advisable to contact the lab when you send the sample. The contact number for TVMDL is (979) 845-3414. Arrangements can also be made through your local veterinarian to collect the appropriate brain sample and put it into formalin. Once the sample is in formalin, it can be sent by regular post.

Is the meat safe to eat?

While the agent that causes chronic wasting disease in deer and elk has not been positively identified, there is strong evidence to suggest that abnormally shaped proteins called prions are involved. Research completed to date indicates that the prions accumulate in certain parts of the infected animal - the brain, eyes, spinal cord, lymph nodes, tonsils and spleen. Based on these findings, hunters are recommended to bone out their meat and consume only muscle tissue from harvested animals.

What is being done to combat CWD?

TPWD has stopped allowing the purchase and importation of live white-tailed deer and mule deer into the state. TAHC maintains a format of entry requirements that all other cervid species must meet before legally coming into the state. Both TPWD and TAHC, along with USDA Veterinary Services, are continuing the testing of captive deer and elk and hunter-harvested animals.

Nationwide efforts to address CWD are accelerating rapidly. In other states with captive animals known to have or have been exposed to CWD, management is concentrating on quarantining or depopulating the affected herds. In other states, such as Colorado, Wyoming, Wisconsin and New York, successful out-of-state hunters may only take boned meat, the hide and the skull cap back home. Any Texas hunter who hunts out-of-state should check with the wildlife department of that state to see if there are any restrictions on the material that may be taken home.

In wild populations, the management option usually recommended is to reduce the density of animals in the affected area to slow the transmission of the disease. This is being done by selective culling of animals suspected to have been directly exposed to the disease. There is still a large need for research on the disease as many questions remain unanswered. There is also a need for increased funding to support laboratories for testing for the disease.

Almost every state wildlife agency is now conducting surveillance to detect if CWD is present. Many state agencies have banned the importation of cervids into the state. Some states have also halted intra-state movement of deer and elk and banned or restricted supplemental feeding programs.

What can hunters do?

Hunters should be vigilant when afield for deer or elk that display abnormal behavior such as staggering or standing with very poor posture. Animals may have an exaggerated wide posture, or may carry the head and ears lowered. Infected animals become very emaciated (thus "wasting" disease) and will appear in very poor body condition. Infected animals will also often stand near water and will consume large amounts of water. Drooling or excessive salivation may be apparent. Report any suspected cases of CWD to the proper authorities immediately.

Hunters should also support Texas surveillance efforts and should report any suspected movement or importation violations.

Finally, hunters should arm themselves with information, especially practical tips for hunting and field dressing game.

Where can I learn more?



email updates Connect with us. twitter facebook youtube flickr more social media