All tests are post mortem so far. But there is some effort to develop a live test of tonsil tissue.

I explained above that road kill deer often times provide a better chance of detection because diseased deer are more likely to get hit on the highway. We do utilize processors to a small degree. If a head is submitted we need contact information for that particular deer. Unless we are there to label the deer with that persons contact information or the processor is willing then we can’t rely on the info being correct. If it is detected we need to know exactly where it came from. Some processors have been very willing to help.

I mentioned on here several weeks ago that Westervelt began asking us to hold on to all of our deer heads about Christmas time. They would begin collecting them like jawbones. This was in Tuscaloosa county

Hopefully they will figure out some way to stop this. If not there is a chance that in 30-40 years deer hunting could be a thing of the past, just stories of how we use to deer hunt.

Wouldnt diseased deer also be more likely to be shot by a hunter also? I mean if theyll stand there and let a car hit them wouldnt they also be less warry of walking out into a greenfield? Just seems like if yall had a limited timeframe before decomposition sets in it woul be easier to get fresh samples in one place like a processor instead of driving all over the district hoping a road kill is still fresh enough.

This worries me to death. On land I hunt in Dallas county, I had pics of a doe last year that was nothing but skin and bones. She came to the feeder consistently with her two fawns but she never did gain any weight and I don't think she made it. A few months later, I found a 3.5 year old 5 pt skull with holes in it. Obviously it had died from a brain abcess. So far this past season, all deer look healthy.

Im worried about this topic as well but have to admit that I don't know a whole lot about it. Im reading up on it when I have time but don't grasp all of it right now.

So if they find 1 deer that tested positive with the CWD, do they say ok that's it. We have it! Or do they find 1 positive and then start testing for more then make a decision based on more tests?

In my opinion, trap, and shoot every deer, sheep, and goat found in a 5 mile radius of a positive test of CWD. Then spray arsenal on all plants and burn the hell out of it. Wouldn't work very well in an urban areas though

won't accomplish a damn thing either, except to kill a lot of deer and waste a lot of money. Won't kill the prions in the dirt.

I think every state needs to come together and allocate money for research. Got to find a way to kill the prions.

I believe last year they arrested a couple of guys over there bringing in deer from a CWD state.

That’s a million dollar idea there Skinny. Heck if it were availabile I’d carry one and use it when I killed a deer.

The problem with tests like that (any test) is false negatives. If you tested a portion of the meat without prions, others could still be infected.

There are plenty of people out there studying these proteins. There has been some development in regards to testing. There has been some promising results from a rectal test to determine positive animals. However, my understanding is that it only shows positive results in a glowing case. In other words, it will show a deer has CWD once it's full-blown but does not show positive during the early stages of the disease. Hopefully this research will lead to other, more promising breakthroughs.

So far, all states have done both.

Once they find it, they say we've got it. Then test heavily in that area for more positive results. Some states wend in and did a depop. in the positive area to attempt to slow the spread, which works to a degree. The bad thing is that type of effort is hugely expensive. WI DCNR spent around $40 million on efforts to contain CWD or slow it's spread. My understanding is that it is still being found in roughly the same percentage of deer in the positive zone and has still spread to other areas.

What are the chances that it is already here and has been around for a while?

It stands to reason that if we did not know what it was and therefore were not testing for it.
The Law of Averages dictates that the odds of detection increase with the sheer number of deer tested.

Not trying to belittle or discredit this deadly disease.

But, I also remember the hype over Mad Cow disease and nowadays I do not remember the last time I heard it mentioned by scientists or the media.

Mad Cow was figured out to be the result of cows being fed cow bones and nerve tissue ground into their feed. Mad Cow is basically caused by cows being made into cannibal cows. Once they figured that part out it became illegal to feed cows other cow parts so the disease is essentially gone or at least no longer a threat. They still test for Mad Cow in Europe but there hasnt been a case for a long time now.

I am probably wrong......

But, I thought that Mad Cow disease was a prion-based disease that is VERY similar to CWD. And, in turn, it was discovered to be spread through utilizing cattle parts that included brain and spinal cord parts. However, that was not the cause....just a means of transfer.

Yeh it is a prion disease, once a cow develops it then it spreads to us by people eating the sick cow.