Wildlife Research Supervisor speaks about CWD

It’s not everyday that a wildlife disease makes headlines in the "Wall Street Journal," but such is the case with chronic wasting disease (CWD), a fatal neurologic disease of deer and elk. Although related to BSE, or mad cow disease, which gained notoriety when it was linked to human deaths in Britain, chronic wasting disease is not known to affect humans or domestic livestock.

CWD was first recognized in 1967 by a young veterinarian at a wildlife research facility outside Ft. Collins, Colorado. No one knows for certain whether the deer in the research pens were infected before they were taken into captivity or if they developed the disease while housed at the facility. In any event, CWD was eventually found in small numbers of free-ranging mule deer and elk in the surrounding area.

Although CWD has been diagnosed in captive deer and elk herds in several other states including one captive elk herd here in Oklahoma, for nearly 30 years, the disease in wild deer and elk was apparently confined to northeast Colorado and adjacent areas in southeast Wyoming. All that changed with the recent finding of infected deer in Nebraska, South Dakota, Wisconsin, and Colorado’s west slope. Most states have not had long term programs to test hunter-harvested deer for CWD, so it’s uncertain whether this finding is the result of the disease suddenly spreading from the endemic area, or perhaps being there all along. One thing is for certain - CWD is no longer a localized problem.

The discovery of CWD in several white-tailed deer harvested in Wisconsin during the 2001 season was the first documented case east of the Mississippi River, nearly 800 miles from the endemic area. This news and the possibility that Wisconsin’s high density herd of whitetails may facilitate the transmission and spread of the disease sent the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources scrambling to develop a containment plan. At present, the plan calls for eradication of all deer within a 361 square mile zone, with a $4 million estimated price tag to battle the disease.

CWD is a double edged sword which presents a huge challenge to wildlife agencies. Although most scientists agree that CWD is not likely to wipe out our nation’s most popular big game animal, most state wildlife agencies have very lean budgets with revenues derived primarily from sportsmen’s license dollars. As Wisconsin has found out, the cost to combat CWD can run high. Consider Saskatchewan, which spent nearly 30 million dollars to eradicate CWD in captive elk herds. These unexpected expenditures can significantly impact an agency’s mission.

The other edge of the sword is the hundreds of thousands of deer hunters nationwide who take to the woods each fall with the hope of harvesting that monster buck or filling their freezers with venison. Even with no evidence of transmission from deer or elk to humans during the past three decades, some hunters are concerned. In a recent survey of deer hunters in Wisconsin, 36 percent of those contacted indicated that they would not go deer hunting this year due to concerns over CWD. This not only translates to a significant loss of revenue for the Wisconsin DNR and all of the associated vendors that rely on the business that deer hunting brings to the state, but seriously compromises the agency’s ability to manage a burgeoning deer herd.

The ODWC began a cooperative project in 1999 to test hunter-harvested deer with the help of the USDA. Deer hunters have been extremely cooperative in this endeavor. The Department plans to continue and expand this surveillance program, and is hopeful that annual monitoring and recently approved rules governing the import of deer and elk will protect this valuable resource and allow Oklahoman’s to enjoy a healthy deer herd for years to come.

Mike Shaw, Wildlife Research Supervisor