Hunters urged not to spread deer urine because of “mad deer disease†fears
Filed under Medicine, wildlife by david brooks at 11:11 am
Hunters have lots of ways to avoid detection by their prey. One is to mimic the animals’ scent - perhaps by spreading deer urine around. But some officials fear that at least one popular deer-urine product contains prions that may be linked to chronic wasting disease, the deer version of “mad cow disease.†The Vermont Department of Fish and Wildlife (press release here) is urging hunters not to use urine-based scents because of this:
The infectious agent … is a mutant protein or “prion†that can be passed in urine. This mutant protein can bind to soils and remain infectious for many years. Some captive deer facilities producing urine products for hunting have not complied with mandatory disease prevention and monitoring regulations. The products they are producing may, as a result, be capable of transmitting diseases such as CWD.
This is a bit of an overstatement, because it’s still not certain that prions cause CWD. Still, the disease is so devastating - entire deer herds have had to be slaughtered in the Upper Midwest because of it - that being over-cautious makes sense. CWD has been found as close as New York State, and we want to keep it out of New England, if possible.
Hmmmm, this is disturbing to say the least, I had heard that area that had low water supply was a suppect in causing the disease.
[quote This mutant protein can bind to soils and remain infectious for many years.[/quote]
If this is true every State is in trouble me thinks. cc
We have had CWD here in my area for some years now. The govt inspected a whole whack of heads and tried thinning the herd with a cull. They find a few every year with CWD and issue more tags for our area trying to decimate the numbers but that ain't working as most folk up here only hunt horns and beer. If you see an animal that isn't in great shape and is acting a might weird then just pass on that one and take a healthy one.