Sixteen years after being first identified in captive Minnesota elk herds and five years after the state’s only case involving a wild herd, Chronic Wasting Disease (CWD) has been identified in Fillmore County. Two bucks were harvested approximately four miles west of Lanesboro in permit area 348. While not a complete surprise, the result is certainly devastating to the ongoing work of the Department of Natural Resources (DNR).
The deer were taken about a mile apart, during the first firearm season, but on different weekends by different hunting parties, with the first harvested Sunday, November 6 and the second Sunday, Nov. 13, according to Lou Cornicelli, DNR Wildlife Research Manager. In a press release, the DNR indicated that 2,493 samples were collected November 5-13 and 373 additional samples collected November 19-21, representing one third of all deer harvested during that time in southeastern Minnesota. Of those, these were the only deer to test positive for the devastating neurological disease.
“It’s a huge sport in our area and there are a lot of people it’s very important to,” says Harmony resident Jim Vagts, who was a founder of the Bluffland Whitetails Association. “We’ve been fortunate to avoid issues from neighboring states and the DNR has done a tremendous job of monitoring it. It’s disappointing, but not unexpected.”
The disease has been of concern to wildlife enthusiasts and state organizations since discovery of it on five captive game farms between 2002 and 2012. It affects cervids such as deer, elk, and moose. “It causes a characteristic spongy degeneration of the brains of infected animals resulting in emaciation, abnormal behavior, loss of bodily functions and death,” says the DNR. Observable behavioral symptoms may include noticeable and progressive weight loss, excessive salivation, and the animal holding its head in a lowered position with drooping ears. The disease is spread via nose to nose contact between animals.
“One of our concerns is environmental contamination. That’s why we instituted a statewide ban on importing cervid carcasses. The CWD prion stays viable for a very, very long time. Research has also shown that animals get pick up the disease while feeding near infected carcasses. Thus, we try and remove positive deer from the landscape,” says Cornicelli. “It’s not like a virus or bacteria that can be deactivated with heat (or cold depending on pathogen). Prions aren’t deactivated that way so when they are on the landscape, they are capable of spreading disease.”
Current research does indicate that the disease cannot be spread to other animals, including livestock such as cattle, horses, sheep, goats, or swine. Additionally, while there is no evidence suggesting that it can infect humans, public health officials recommend avoiding exposure. “Our hope is the disease was discovered early and a very small percentage of the population is infected. We’re not looking at this from the perspective of a statewide problem; we’re approaching it as a new, local infection in a few deer,” adds Cornicelli.
The DNR has also been working closely with the Minnesota Board of Animal Health, which regulates captive cervid herds. The potential impact on commercial game farms is being felt both by the farmers protecting their animals from possible contamination from infected wild herds and by the DNR, in seeking to keep wild herds safe from any potential spread from captive herds.
“The things that are important are that we’ve talked to the four game farms within a ten-mile radius of where these deer were located. We’ve restricted the movement of all those animals,” says Dr. Paul Anderson, Minnesota Board of Animal Health, who has worked with farmed herds since 1990. “All of these farms have been testing and have tested negative for CWD for more than ten years. One has been testing since 1998. All samples have been negative.”
Anderson explained that one of the four farms has double fences to keep wild and captive herds from nose to nose contact. A second farm is in the process of putting double fences in. “We are verifying that they are fenced. We work proactively with those in the industry and do our due diligence to make sure they’re doing their part. We view CWD seriously and are working to keep it restricted. There’s no reason to fear spread by herds. These have tested negative and we want to make sure herds are not exposed to disease. Our message is our farmers are doing their job and we’re working to make sure they do.”
Testing for the disease is simple and highly encouraged. “We remove two lymph nodes from the neck and they go the diagnostic lab at Colorado State University for analysis. They do a screening ELISA to make a preliminary judgement on the sample. If it comes back positive, the tissue is analyzed using immunohistochemistry. The IHC test is the confirmatory test. The turnaround on the ELISA is three business days,” explains Cornicelli. Additionally, hunters can fill out a form, complete it and place it (along with the head of a harvested deer), in drop boxes located at: Preston Forestry office, Lanesboro Fisheries office, Magnum Sports in Chatfield, and Oak Meadow Meats in Harmony. In the surveillance areas, samples are tested free of charge.
There appears to be no impact on the local hunt, thus far. Muzzleloader season is currently open and bow hunting open until the end of the year. Cornicelli says the state hasn’t seen the economic effect Wisconsin has had. “When the disease was found near Pine Island, we didn’t lose hunters. Conversely, when it was found in Wisconsin in 2002, we lost about 10% of our southeast hunters for one year. At the time, much less was known about the disease and people were more afraid for their personal health and safety. I don’t see that today. People are much more educated about the disease and understand it’s limited to cervids only,” he says. “We still recommend proper food handling guidelines; however, hunters seem to understand the low risk.”
So far, the response from hunters has been good. “I worked in Chatfield for two weekends and hunters were, and have always been, great. They willingly donate the sample, but also say they hope we don’t find it,” Cornicelli adds. “I think people understand what’s going on with increasing prevalence and the long-term implications on herd health and viability. I think we all share a common goal of protecting our deer population from a disease that is 100% fatal.”
Hunters, likewise, seem to be backing the efforts of the DNR. “They’ve done a great job of staying on top of it. I’m 110% supportive of the DNR and I fully support their decisions,” adds Vagts, who anticipates an intensive harvest in permit area 348 and possibly 347. He acknowledges this would diminish herd, having a negative effect on hunting on that area for a few years, but says having the disease prevalent would be greater.
According to Cornicelli, when it comes to hunting, the DNR will certainly be lowering densities as they eye the big picture. “When you deal with wild animals, the best response is a quick response. If you look to Wisconsin, the agency hasn’t been able to control it effectively, and they’ve got a serious problem. Our goal is to eliminate the disease and lower contact opportunities. No, we’re not going to kill every deer on the landscape, but this is something you have to do to have healthy herds. Our goal is to only have a short term disruption and it means setting aside our personal desires for a larger goal.
“You have to weigh the consequences; look at as a whole. It’s unfortunate, but the herd will come back and hopefully healthier. It might be painful things now, but I’m hoping in the not too far future, researchers will come up with live test and vaccine that will totally change the issue.”
There will be a public meeting in December to announce the state’s 26-page, four-step CWD response plan details. No specific date, time, or location has been set, but the DNR is hoping to host the meeting sooner rather than later. In the meantime, landowners and hunters can stay updated via DNR news releases and the DNR CWD homepage, www.mndnr.gov/cwd. The public is encouraged to sign up for email alerts as well. “Our goal is to keep people informed every step of the way,” adds Cornicelli. “Keep informed, stay aware.”
“It’s crucial to get a lot of good information out to our county right now,” echoes Vagts. “Hunting is a long important tradition in my family. I’ve already reached out to two friends in the core area and have invited them to hunt at my place.” Cornicelli also believes it’ll be important to have a place for people to go and says that if hunting groups can help to facilitate that, their partnership will be an vital one.
“The community needs to be supportive and we need to help the community understand,” adds Vagts.” I just hunted my 60th year with my grandchildren and had immense pleasure in that. It’s a huge part of my life and I want the same opportunity for them; to hunt a non-CWD herd. To do that, we have to be aggressive, stop this disease, and be supportive of the DNR.”
Leave a Reply