CWD in Deer

CWD in Deer

David Sparks Ph.D.
David Sparks Ph.D.
Outdoorsman and outdoor writer Steve Jones contends that the sale and transportation of infected animals to game farms in areas harboring CWD could be responsible for the spread of the disease to wild animals. ""You sent me a link and on this link there are a bunch of young bucks in velvet and it says trophy deer industry linked to disease costs taxpayers millions. Can you explain that? The trophy industry which is called the confined cervid industry, did not create the disease but the disease has made many geographic leaps around North America and even one to South Korea. Most of these look like they are closely associated with the confined cervid industry meaning that they trucked in an infected animal and caused the disease to make a large geographic leap. The disease spreads naturally on its own but much slower. So you are saying that these high fence operations where they breed deer and elk become a petri dish for chronic wasting disease? They are engaged in interstate and international commerce with these live animals and there are no live tests. There is no way that you can look at an animal and tell if it has it, there is no way you can test and tell if it has it. You can only test them after they die which is usually shortly after they become symptomatic which is usually a year and a half to two years after they got the disease, after they became infectious. So they are engaging in commerce in these live animals, they have no way to know whether they are sick or not.
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