Minnesota Public Radio reports in CWD reported in captive deer in Pine County:
A captive deer at a farm in east-central Minnesota has tested positive for chronic wasting disease, in a case linked to another CWD discovery last month.
The Minnesota Board of Animal Health said Friday that a doe at a farm in Pine County tested positive for the fatal brain disease. Last month's CWD case was in western Minnesota's Douglas County.
After that report, state officials "identified the Pine County herd as high priority early in our investigation because our records showed it provided deer to the Douglas County herd,” Dr. Linda Glaser, health assistant director for the board, said in a news release. “At this point in the investigation CWD has not been detected in any of the other herds connected to Douglas County.”
The Douglas County case prompted the Department of Natural Resources to impose a 30-day emergency rule banning the transport of farmed white-tailed deer within Minnesota. That rule remains in effect. . . . .
We posted about the Douglas County case and its consequences in three posts:
MN DNR emergency rule prohibits all movement of farmed white-tailed deer for next 30 days
Minnesota Chronic Wasting Disease test results update-- and a case of regulatory capture
Here's the press release from the Board of Animal Health, Investigation leads to additional CWD positive deer on Pine County farm:
The ongoing chronic wasting disease investigation of farms tied to the Douglas County detection first reported in December 2019 has led to a CWD-confirmed doe on a Pine County farm. The herd in Pine County was being investigated because it provided animals to the Douglas County herd in the past, including the CWD positive doe that initiated the disease investigation.
“We identified the Pine County herd as high priority early in our investigation because our records showed it provided deer to the Douglas County herd,” said Board Assistant Director, Dr. Linda Glaser. “At this point in the investigation CWD has not been detected in any of the other herds connected to Douglas County.”
The Douglas County herd is completely depopulated, and the site is not allowed to have any deer or elk for five years. The owner must also maintain fencing to prevent wild deer from accessing the empty pen and post biohazard signs on the fencing for the entire five-year period.
The Pine County herd owner must also depopulate and test all remaining deer on the farm and maintain fencing with biohazard signage for five years. The investigation is continuing beyond this herd to discover additional movements of deer between it and other locations in the past. Any additional farms identified will be quarantined and their movement records will be reviewed.
CWD is a disease of the deer and elk family caused by prions, which can damage brain and nerve tissue. The disease is most likely transmitted when infected deer and elk shed prions in saliva, feces, urine, and other fluids or tissues. CWD is not known to naturally occur in other animals. The disease is fatal in deer and elk, and there are no known treatments or vaccines. Consuming infected meat is not advised.
As Forum News Service noted: Chronic wasting disease biggest outdoors story in Minnesota and North Dakota in the last decade.
Photo: A white-tail doe.
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