Published: November 17, 2007 11:19 pm      

DNR says CWD in state ‘confined to small area’

CHARLESTON — Chronic Wasting Disease, which burst onto the state scene in 2005, appears to be in check for now, state Division of Natural Resource officials say.

DNR scientists, in cooperation with the University of Georgia and the Minnesota Veterinary Diagnostic Laboratory, have tested nearly 1,500 deer in the state, but to date, only 13 cases of CWD have been confirmed, all in Hampshire County. The first CWD was found in a road-kill deer in 2005.

There isn’t any evidence CWD can affect humans, but public health officials say meat should not be eaten from any suspect deer which may look sick. Always avoid eating the brain, spinal cord, eyes, lymph nodes, spleen, and tonsils of any suspect deer, the Web site said.

Deer hunters are asked to watch for any signs of CWD while hunting and report them. Infected animals will most likely be seen staggering or standing with poor posture and have lost the fear of humans. CWD deer also become thin, are known to drool and stand in or near water.

The 12-day bucks-only firearms season, the most popular hunting period in the state, opens Monday.

“The status of CWD appears to be localized and confined to a small area of Hampshire County,” Paul Johansen, DNR assistant chief in charge of game management, said last week. “Our extensive survey found this region is pretty well defined.”

Johansen said a “containment zone” established by the DNR had contributed, plus special CWD hunts inside the county contributed to understanding the mystery disease and kept it under control. No CWD deer have been found in the two special hunts, but that doesn’t mean CWD has been stopped in the state, he said.

CWD affects the brain and nervous system of deer and elk and is caused by an abnormal formation of a protein called a prion. It is similar to mad cow disease and there are no tests to confirm it in live animals and no vaccines to prevent it from spreading.

Although scientists aren’t exactly sure how the disease is spread, in laboratory tests, CWD can be spread both directly from animal to animal, and indirectly from soil to animal, according to the state DNR Web site, www.wvdnr.gov. Many believe saliva, feces and other bodily functions are the most likely modes of transmission.

CWD has been found in deer from Canada to Wisconsin, but seems to be primarily concentrated in Midwestern states. How it found its way to West Virginia is uncertain, but DNR officials have their theories.

“I would suspect the most likely routes of contamination occurred through the movement of live deer brought into the state,” Johansen said. “And then they were turned loose illegally. Or possibly it was brought back from another state from a carcass.”

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A second and less well known disease recently in the news no longer is affecting deer, Johansen said, but took its toll this year.

Epizootic Hemorrhagic Disease is an infectious and often fatal disease which sometimes is commonly referred to as “blue tongue disease.” EHD is spread from animal to animal when bitten by small, two-winged flies called midges.

“West Virginia gets sporadic incidents of EHD, but what was so unique this year was that it was so widespread,” he said. “The outbreak involved about 28 counties.”

Midges are killed during the first frost in the fall, which came extremely late this year in certain parts of West Virginia. This, combined with an unusually dry summer, may have contributed to the outbreak, he said.

Johansen said it is unknown exactly how many deer succumbed to EHD this year, but there appears not to be a “drastic reduction in deer.”

— E-mail:

cgiggenbach@register-herald.com