Wasting disease detected in a wild deer in Oneida County


By JOHN KEKIS
Associated Press Writer

April 27, 2005, 6:13 PM EDT


SYRACUSE, N.Y. -- State environmental officials said Wednesday they received a preliminary positive result for chronic wasting disease in a wild deer.

The positive sample came from the tissue of a yearling white-tailed deer, which was tested as part of the state Department of Environmental Conservation's monitoring efforts in Oneida County. The sample, tested at Cornell University, will be forwarded to the National Veterinary Services Laboratory in Ames, Iowa, to be verified.

If confirmed, it would be the first known instance of CWD in the wild in New York state.

The news comes just six days after state wildlife officials reported none of the tissue samples taken from 64 wild deer had tested positive. Authorities have so far confirmed five infected captive deer.

The DEC began intensive monitoring after CWD was found in two captive white-tailed herds in Oneida County. The state Department of Agriculture and Markets completed testing of the captive deer in early April and found five positive results for the disease in the two captive herds. It marked the first time CWD had been found outside the Midwest or Rocky Mountains.

The DEC said it will file emergency regulations later this week to ensure proper handling of deer in an effort to prevent further spread of CWD in the wild. The regulations will establish a containment area in Oneida County where CWD has been identified. Initially, it will include the cities of Rome, Sherrill, Utica and Oneida, and the towns of Floyd, Marcy, Whitestown, Westmoreland, Verona, Vernon, Kirkland and New Hartford.

The new rules will prohibit movement of certain animal parts out of the containment area, establish mandatory check stations for any deer taken by hunters in the containment area, and prohibit possession of any deer killed by a motor vehicle so DEC can acquire specimens for testing.

The collection, sale, possession, or transport of deer or elk urine taken from the containment area also will not be allowed. Urine is used by hunters to attract the animals.

The emergency rules also will specify record keeping and reporting requirements for taxidermists, and wildlife rehabilitators will be prohibited from taking in wild white-tailed deer at facilities that house live antlered animals unless the rehabilitators possess a specific permit from DEC. Retailers who sell deer feed will be required to post a sign reminding customers that feeding wild deer is illegal.

"Our emergency regulations will be finalized by the end of the week in the containment area," DEC spokesman Michael Fraser said. "We're going to require hunters to check any deer. Right now, we're sampling road kill, and in the fall we hope to sample results from hunter-killed deer."

DEC has conducted statewide sampling of wild deer for CWD since 2002. To date, more than 3,700 samples have been taken from wild white-tailed deer. Fraser said the intensive sampling of tissue in Oneida County would end early Saturday.

"We've always said we were going to take an adaptive approach to the samplings," he said. "Now, we'll go about trying to shift gears, change the approach a little and make a determination exactly where it is and how frequently it's occurring."

Concern the fatal disease could spread to humans arose recently after 350 people at a sportsman's dinner in March ate venison from sick deer. Scientists say they're still learning about CWD and can't say for sure if it could be transmitted to humans.

CWD affects the brain and central nervous system of certain deer and elk. There is no evidence that it is linked to disease in humans or domestic livestock other than deer or elk.

http://www.newsday.com/news/local/wi...gion-apnewyork

living minutes from Rome...Id say yep, there goes my season...Mo.... F......s!!!! [:@][:@][:@][:'(]

Man I am sick just thinking what it is gonna be like if it spreads. I just read it on the website. I hope they can contain it but some how I don't think they will. What is the deer population gonna be like in ten years??? I hope it doesn't spread!!

If you need any examples, try checking out Wisconsin. They found CWD in the wild in their herd in early 2000, spent millions killing hundreds of thousands of deer to "eradicate" the herd, and contain this so-called "epidemic". Yet last year they enjoyed their second best deer take ever. An expert from the state very accurately summed it all up when he said that it wasnt the CWD that was the epidemic, rather the scare tactics and kneee-jerk reactions that followed. How true...

I feel bad for you guys in that area. Itll definitely affect you this season anyway. The good thing is, they dont plan to kill hundreds of animals like other states have, and will continue this falls deer season. Youll just be required to take your kills to a check station nearby so they can pull a sample from the deer for study.

Personally, not real sure that is a good thing Bill.

Isn't a reduction in the population about the only way currently available to minimize both the infection rate locally and spread to other areas?

Spoke to a DEC officer about this,
he stated that if there is CWD in the wild it probably wouldnt be related to this case,
without knowing how CWD spreads hard to tell how it would jump from farm bred deer to wild deer,

Terasec, unfortunately, the COs dont have all the info sometimes. They are in enforcement. Ag and markets is who to speak to. Its believed that from the initial positives, the rehabbing and release of deer legally may have caused the contact.

Ruffed grouse, in some cases, yes, it might be. In low population areas, normal movement doesnt seem to allow it to spread, and hunting does the rest. Each situation seems to be handled differently. The state had initially said they werent planning eradication projects. They might still, though. I just post what Im being told to date.

Oh, and Terasec, it didnt start with farm bred deer, per se. It started with a farm that rehabbed deer and released them, with the states permission. He is also a taxidermist, and owned his own deer.

I live not to far from Rome, 1 hr. away, Mad cow is similar to CWD, how do they know it won't do the same thing. What next, West Nile in Turkeys, this in deer, getting so I don't want to eat anything. I Won't eat a deer that tests positive, not worth it.

Puddy, I cant help you on that, its up to you to make your own intelligent conclusions. Thats your own personal decision. Youll need to butcher and store the meat and wait for the tests to come back before consuming.