September 30, 2021 at 2:34 p.m.
Hunters should consider having deer tested for CWD
Carcass movement, feeding and baiting, not allowed
Hunters should consider having deer tested for CWD
It is known that CWD can be spread through direct contact, from one deer to another. It can also be spread through the environment and has been found in urine, saliva and feces. The prions that cause CWD can persist in the environment, being taken up by plants growing there. It is unsure how long prions can remain viable on the landscape, but it is known to be more than several years.
The Department of Natural Resources (DNR) is once again asking hunters to get their deer tested. Each year there is a rotating district that is of special interest in the way of CWD testing. This year that is the northeastern part of the state, which includes 13 counties. While that does not affect Northwoods counties, there is still ongoing surveillance in an area in southern Oneida, northern Lincoln and the northwestern corner of Langlade County. A deer was harvested from the wild herd near the Wisconsin River that ultimately tested positive for the disease. There is another area in northwestern Oneida County, which also involved a small piece of southwestern Vilas County and a small portion of eastern Forest County. This is due to multiple findings of CWD in captive deer near Three Lakes.
The more deer that are able to be tested, according to the DNR, the better handle the department will be able to get on how and where the disease is spreading.
For that reason, hunters are asked to continue to have their deer sampled.
Sampling locations in the Northwoods include:
• The DNR Service Station in Rhinelander
• Lake Tomahawk Meat Market
• Strasburg's North Country Taxidermy
• TJ's Butcher Block
• The DNR Service Station in Woodruff
• Prime Choice Meat Market
• The Eagle River Ranger's Station
• The Three Lakes Shell Station
Full instructions on how a hunter can prepare their own deer for sampling can be found on the DNR website dnr.wi.gov.
Carcass disposal
Movement of deer, whether dead or alive, is known to be a key pathway in the spread of CWD. Moving of a carcass by a hunter has the potential to move the disease great distances as hunters head home from deer camp or another hunting location. Deer should be brought to a licensed taxidermist or permitted meat processor within 72 hours. If this is not done, there are only certain parts of the deer that may be moved beyond that county or the adjacent county. These are the same parts that are allowed into Wisconsin from other states known to have CWD.
Those parts include:
• Meat that is cut and wrapped (either commercially or privately)
• Quarters or other portions of meat to which no part of the spinal column is attached
• Meat that has been deboned
• Hides with no heads attached
• Finished taxidermy heads
• Antlers with no tissue attached
• Clean skull plates with no lymphoid or brain tissue attached
• Clean skull with no lymphoid or brain tissue attached
• Upper canine teeth
When possible, carcasses should be buried, disposed of in a landfill accepting deer carcasses or, if harvested on private land, returned to the location of the harvest. The Eagle River Highway G Sanitary Landfill is the only landfill in the Northwoods listed as accepting deer carcasses on the DNR website.
Processing
The DNR has several recommendations for those who process their own deer. These precautions will help hunters reduce exposure to prions. When processing their deer, hunters should:
• Wear rubber gloves
• Minimize contact with the brain, spinal cord, spleen and lymph nodes
• Use knives and utensils dedicated for field dressing
• Remove all internal organs
• Keep meat from individual deer separate
• Do not cut through the spinal column except to remove the head. Use a dedicated knife for that purpose
• Remove all the fat and connective tissue. This will also remove the lymph nodes
• Wash all knives and other equipment by soaking them for an hour in a 50/50 solution of bleach and water for non-stainless steel items. For stainless steel items soak for a minimum of five minutes
• Wipe down counters and other work areas with a 50/50 solution of bleach and water; let them air dry
Feeding and baiting
Due to CWD-positive deer having been harvested in Oneida County in two locations - one near the Wisconsin River in the southwestern part of the county and also near Three Lakes at a game farm, Vilas, Oneida, Forest, Lincoln and Langlade counties remain under a feeding and baiting ban. Hunters are not allowed to bait deer and residents are not allowed to feed deer for any purpose, including the desire for wildlife viewing.
In counties where a deer tested positive for CWD, the feeding and baiting ban is for three years. The ban lasts two years in counties within a 10-mile radius of the positive finding. No bans are set to expire in the Northwoods this year. The clock essentially resets when another deer tests positive. This is controlled by state statue.
According to the feeding and baiting regulation, food may still be places for birds and small mammals under certain conditions.
Feed for those animals can be placed if:
• It is placed in bird feeding devices and structures at a sufficient height or design to prevent access by deer
• The structures and devices are within 50 yards of an occupied dwelling devoted to human occupancy
When any other animal such as deer, bear or elk are found to be utilizing bird feeding devices they must be removed, enclosed or elevated higher to prevent access. Placement of plain water for drinking or birdbaths is allowed.
Beckie Gaskill may be reached via email at [email protected].
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