HARRISBURG – While there continues to be no known cases of chronic wasting disease in the Commonwealth, the Pennsylvania Game Commission, joined by veterinarians and laboratory technicians from the Pennsylvania and U.S. departments of Agriculture, will, once again, step up its efforts tomorrow to verify that fact.
“Currently, there are no confirmed or suspected cases of CWD-infected deer or elk in Pennsylvania, and we are doing what we can to ensure that it stays that way,” said Carl G. Roe, Game Commission executive director. “We are planning to collect samples from 4,000 hunter-killed deer to test for CWD in the upcoming firearms deer season. Last year, we tested samples from more than 4,251 deer. CWD was not detected in any of the samples.”
Game Commission deer aging teams will collect deer heads throughout the state beginning Tuesday, Dec. 2 – the second day of the state’s two-week rifle deer season. The heads will be taken to the six Game Commission Region Offices, where samples will be collected for testing.
The CWD tests on these deer samples will be conducted at the University of Pennsylvania’s veterinary diagnostic laboratory at the New Bolton Center in Chester County. Results are expected in 2008.
The Game Commission collected liver, lung and blood samples from the 42 elk harvested during the September and November seasons. The Game Commission also collected brain tissue and lymph node samples from elk that were not to be mounted, and requested that taxidermists submit the caped heads from elk provided by hunters seeking to have their trophies mounted. The agency provided elk hunters with pre-paid mailers for taxidermists to submit the samples. All elk samples will be tested for CWD at the New Bolton Center.
Under a contract with Penn State University, the samples also will be tested for bovine tuberculosis and brucellosis. With funding from the state’s Animal Health Diagnostic Commission, the Game Commission and Penn State also are examining liver samples for nutritional mineral and heavy metal content, as elk frequently graze on reclaimed strip mines.
Dr. Walter Cottrell, Game Commission wildlife veterinarian, said the agency will release the elk and deer test results as soon as they are available.
The Game Commission, with the assistance of the Pennsylvania and U.S. departments of Agriculture, has conducted tests on more than 250 elk and more than 18,500 deer killed by hunters in Pennsylvania over the past six years. Since 1998, more than 500 deer and elk that have died of unknown illness or were exhibiting abnormal behavior also have been tested. No evidence of CWD has been found in these samples. The Game Commission will continue collect samples from deer and elk that appear sick or behave abnormally.
Even though CWD had not been detected in Pennsylvania, CWD testing of healthy appearing hunter-killed deer or elk is available through the New Bolton Center. Hunters who wish to have their deer tested may do so for a fee by making arrangements with the New Bolton Center Laboratory (610-444-5800).
First identified in 1967, CWD is a transmissible spongiform encephalopathy (TSE) that affects cervids, including all species of deer, elk and moose. It is a progressive and always fatal disease, which scientists theorize is caused by an agent capable of transforming normal brain proteins into an abnormal form.
There currently is no practical way to test live animals for CWD, and there is no vaccine to prevent an animal from contracting the disease, nor is there a cure for animals that become infected. There is no evidence of CWD being transmissible to humans or to other non-cervid livestock under normal conditions.
Deer harboring CWD may not show any symptoms in the disease’s early stages. The usual incubation period for CWD is around 12-24 months. Commonly observed signs of an infected animal include lowered head and ears, uncoordinated movement, rough-hair coat, weight loss, increased thirst, excessive drooling, weakness, and ultimately, death.
Hunters who see deer behaving oddly, that appear to be sick, or that are dying for unknown reasons are urged to contact the nearest Game Commission Region Office. Hunters should not kill or consume animals that appear to be sick.
“We count on hunters to be our eyes when they head out to hunt deer,” Roe said. “With the help of the nearly one million deer hunters who go afield, we can cover a lot of ground.
“Hunters should be mindful of wildlife health issues, but even more so in recent years. We must keep the threat posed by CWD in perspective. At this point, we have no evidence that CWD is in Pennsylvania, or that it poses health problems for humans.”
Not only should hunters shoot only deer that appear to be healthy and behave normally, but the Game Commission also recommends that they use rubber gloves for field dressing. These are simple precautions that hunters can follow to ensure their hunt remains a safe and pleasurable experience.
CWD is present in free-ranging or captive wildlife populations in 14 states and two Canadian provinces. The Game Commission has been working with other state agencies to protect the Commonwealth’s wild and captive deer and elk by emphasizing measures designed to prevent its introduction into the state.
In September of 2005, in order to prepare for a possible CWD occurrence, Gov. Edward G. Rendell and agency representatives of the Pennsylvania CWD task force finalized and signed the state’s response plan, which outlines ways to prevent CWD from entering the state’s borders and, if CWD is in Pennsylvania, how to detect, contain and work to eradicate it. The task force was comprised of representatives from the Governor’s Office, the Game Commission, the state Department of Agriculture, the U.S. Department of Agriculture, the state Department of Health, the state Department of Environmental Protection and the Pennsylvania Emergency Management Agency. Also, representatives of important stakeholder groups – including hunters, deer and elk farmers, meat processors and taxidermists – helped shape the final draft of the plan. A copy of the final plan can be viewed on the Game Commission’s Web site by clicking on “Reports/Minutes” and then selecting “Pennsylvania CWD Response Plan.”
In December of 2005, recognizing the transmissible nature of the disease, the Game Commission issued an order banning the importation of specific carcass parts from states and Canadian provinces where CWD had been identified in free-ranging cervid populations. Hunters traveling to the following states must abide by the importation restrictions: Colorado, Illinois, Kansas, Nebraska, New Mexico, New York (CWD containment area only), South Dakota, Utah, West Virginia (Hampshire County only), Wisconsin and Wyoming; as well as the Canadian provinces of Alberta and Saskatchewan.
Specific carcass parts prohibited from being imported into Pennsylvania by hunters are: head (including brain, tonsils, eyes and lymph nodes); spinal cord/backbone; spleen; skull plate with attached antlers, if visible brain or spinal cord material is present; cape, if visible brain or spinal cord material is present; upper canine teeth, if root structure or other soft material is present; any object or article containing visible brain or spinal cord material; and brain-tanned hides.
The order does not limit the importation of the following animal parts originating from any cervid in the quarantined states, provinces or area: meat, without the backbone; skull plate with attached antlers, if no visible brain or spinal cord material is present; tanned hide or raw hide with no visible brain or spinal cord material present; cape, if no visible brain or spinal cord material is present; upper canine teeth, if no root structure or other soft material is present; and taxidermy mounts.
To learn more about CWD, visit the agency’s Web site and click on the “CWD Update” section in the “Quick Clicks” box in the upper right-hand corner of the homepage.