CWD?

[Firehole Hunter]

Apparently, now I am having to have my elk brain matter tested "when" I get a bull elk in my unit, or should I say hopefully. Where would I get this done around Rifle, Colorado? Lastly, how long will it take out of my trip back East? What happens to the elk meat if the results are positive for CWD and the to the skull of the bull should I be that lucky?

 

[Indian Summer]

Where I hunt they take the brain sample at the game check station. You can go home after that and look the results up online in about a week. You do what you want with meat and skull. They are just collecting data.

 

[spike camp]

The brains aren’t tested, lymph nodes in the upper neck area are taken for testing.
That process takes about 15 minutes.
There are 16 or so testing locations in Colorado, and they are all listed in the regulations book.
What happens with the meat is up to you.

 

[JGTWI]

I can’t speak to your specific areas, but I hunt in an area of WI where CWD is very prevalent.

We have both ‘self testing’ and assisted testing depending on the location and season. The assisted testing is a piece of cake. For self testing you need to leave the head at the test station, which can cause issues to work around if you have a buck. But the process itself is simple.

In either case, results are available online in 7-14 days.

Around here, what you do with the head and meat is up to you, they just ask that you dispose of the carcasses responsibly.

I have a euro mount in my living room of a buck that tested positive, but I did not eat the meat.

 

[CMF]

Better check your home and pass through states for transporting the skull and bone. We bring a boiling pot for the skull and debone the meat so we don't have anything to worry about.

 

[Indian Summer]

Once I’m on the road I don’t worry about other states. We pack antlers away out of sight. Coolers too. Out of sight out of mind. In Wyoming they take brain samples not lymph nodes.

 

[fmyth]

Once I’m on the road I don’t worry about other states. We pack antlers away out of sight. Coolers too. Out of sight out of mind. In Wyoming they take brain samples not lymph nodes.

I shot 2 elk in WY in 2020 and watched the Warden cut out the laraphylangic lymph nodes to send out for CWD testing. In 2019 no one was available to cut them out so I did it myself and send the lymph nodes to the lab for testing. This video was produced by WYG&F to show you how to cut them out to send them in for testing:

 

[Indian Summer]

I shot 2 elk in WY in 2020 and watched the Warden cut out the laraphylangic lymph nodes to send out for CWD testing. In 2019 no one was available to cut them out so I did it myself and send the lymph nodes to the lab for testing.

They took a pair of tweezers and reached into the hole in the rear of the skull and took brain samples from mine. Same thing for the past 5 years. Maybe both are ok to test.

 

[Firehole Hunter]

So I have to leave the mountains, take the head into town someplace (I still don't know where in Rifle) then after letting them (mad scientists) do what they want to it, then I have to stop and spend half a day boiling the head before I can get back on the road and head East with my trophy and meat, and they don't even tell me if the animal is ok to eat. Great program you got there Colorado. Real user friendly. I wonder how many say the heck with that.

 

[1stGenOutdoorsman]

It’s inconvenient but so is having herds across the country infected with CWD. I know people will skip these check stations, if you do, please be responsible in disposing of the carcass. I live in a county designated as a “core cwd area”, I worry about CWD a lot and don’t want that for everyone else. We should all try to slow the spread and buy more time for the science to catch up to the problem.

 

[Indian Summer]

You don’t have to boil. Take a propane torch and cook off and dehydrate the inside of the brain cavity and you’re all set.

Trust me it’s a good feeling when you see “Negative” on your test results. Find out ahead of time where you need to go and it shouldn’t be much of an inconvenience. And it’s free.

 

[spike camp]

So I have to leave the mountains, take the head into town someplace (I still don't know where in Rifle) then after letting them (mad scientists) do what they want to it, then I have to stop and spend half a day boiling the head before I can get back on the road and head East with my trophy and meat, and they don't even tell me if the animal is ok to eat. Great program you got there Colorado. Real user friendly. I wonder how many say the heck with that.

Maybe it’s better if you just stay in the Atlanta area, so you don’t have to do anything.

It takes a few minutes to find the testing site near Rifle. You ‘still don’t know where’ because you haven’t done an ounce of research.

Those ‘mad scientists’ are CPW Officers and
Test results are sent to the tag holder.

Colorado gets hammered by NR’s breaking the rules, you cool with just being another part of the problem?

 

[160andup]

Maybe it’s better if you just stay in the Atlanta area, so you don’t have to do anything.

It takes a few minutes to find the testing site near Rifle. You ‘still don’t know where’ because you haven’t done an ounce of research.

Those ‘mad scientists’ are CPW Officers.

Colorado gets hammered by NR’s breaking the rules, you cool with just being another part of the problem?

Yup, this is by far your best bet!!

 

[RamDreamer]

Yup, this is by far your best bet!!

Agreed.

 

[CMF]

So I have to leave the mountains, take the head into town someplace (I still don't know where in Rifle) then after letting them (mad scientists) do what they want to it, then I have to stop and spend half a day boiling the head before I can get back on the road and head East with my trophy and meat, and they don't even tell me if the animal is ok to eat. Great program you got there Colorado. Real user friendly. I wonder how many say the heck with that.

It's not CO making us boil the skull it's MS. I'm not certain on CO laws, but here is the law in MS

Deer Carcass Transportation Ban

It is unlawful to:

• Import, transport, or possess any portion of a cervid carcass originating from any state, territory, or foreign country into Mississippi.
• Transport any portion of a cervid carcass outside of an MDWFP-defined CWD Management Zone.
• Transport any portion of a cervid carcass outside of an MDWFP-defined CWD Management Zone from Arkansas or Louisiana lands east of the Mississippi River that lie within that zone.

This rule does not apply to:

• Meat from cervids that has been completely deboned.
• Antlers, antlers attached to cleaned skull plates or cleaned skulls where no tissue is attached to the skull.
• Cleaned teeth.
• Finished taxidermy and antler products.
• Hides and tanned products.
• Any portions of white-tailed deer originating from land outside of an MDWFP-defined CWD Management Zone between the Mississippi River levees in Arkansas and Louisiana.

 

[Firehole Hunter]

Maybe it’s better if you just stay in the Atlanta area, so you don’t have to do anything.

It takes a few minutes to find the testing site near Rifle. You ‘still don’t know where’ because you haven’t done an ounce of research.

Those ‘mad scientists’ are CPW Officers.

Colorado gets hammered by NR’s breaking the rules, you cool with just being another part of the problem?

Well Spike you sure are passionate about the matter. I thought that you wanted my Atlanta money. Every time I come out there your brothers and sisters are always trying to take it out of my wallet. I guess this is a way to get me to stay another night in Colorado. To bad Georgia hasn't had an elk season yet.

PS I will try to obey all the rules and even the ones that are idiotic.

 

[Bulldawg]

No you don't have to do any of that. Stay home, with all this CWD you don't want to take the chance anyways. I say you just save all time and money traveling out here to run that risk.

So I have to leave the mountains, take the head into town someplace (I still don't know where in Rifle) then after letting them (mad scientists) do what they want to it, then I have to stop and spend half a day boiling the head before I can get back on the road and head East with my trophy and meat, and they don't even tell me if the animal is ok to eat. Great program you got there Colorado. Real user friendly. I wonder how many say the heck with that.

 

[Bulldawg]

Actually, you might want to look into the laws of your own state. By law you're not allow to bring the skull back to Georgia, and meat has to be boned out. You can bring a clean skull plate back, but not the whole head, so you definitely shouldn't head west.

hen I have to stop and spend half a day boiling the head before I can get back on the road and head East with my trophy and meat,

 

[dukeball33]

Well Spike you sure are passionate about the matter. I thought that you wanted my Atlanta money. Every time I come out there your brothers and sisters are always trying to take it out of my wallet. I guess this is a way to get me to stay another night in Colorado. To bad Georgia hasn't had an elk season yet.

PS I will try to obey all the rules and even the ones that are idiotic.

Firehole, I encourage you to research CWD, transmission and long lasting impacts of the disease. It’s serious... whether you believe meat from CWD infected animals is safe to eat or not; the prions that cause CWD are very persistent and once the disease is found in an area is difficult to impossible to remove from the landscape. CWD is contagious, fatal in the all cervids, and as I said difficult to remove.

I don’t know if GA has CWD but you don’t want it... your practices to get the animal tested and follow protocols in CO are respectful to wildlife managers and current / future hunters from CO all the way to GA. The whole premise is better safe than sorry, because there are no mulligans...

 

[txhunter581]

Well Spike you sure are passionate about the matter. I thought that you wanted my Atlanta money. Every time I come out there your brothers and sisters are always trying to take it out of my wallet. I guess this is a way to get me to stay another night in Colorado. To bad Georgia hasn't had an elk season yet.

PS I will try to obey all the rules and even the ones that are idiotic.

I’m confused. Are you saying your are Ok with transporting possibly infected material to your state and your deer?

And as far as treating the skull, and transporting the carcass, that would be requirements of your state, not Colorado

As to what you do if you get a positive, that is entirely up to you. To cover their a$& Colorado will tell you to not eat it. I personally would not eat a CWD positive animal. Not because I would be that worried about myself. But I refuse to feed it to my grandkids or friends on Chemo (immunocompromised) I believe it could jump to humans someday

Opinions vary!