Is CWD the Imminent Doom for Hunting?

[BuckSmasher]

Lots of threads on CWD lately and I started researching it. I dont see how this doesnt end sport hunting in the next 20 years .

Any hope out there?

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[Bubblehide]

Considering we are unable to eliminate the prions, this is a very serious threat.

 

[Travis Hobbs]

CWD has been in many places longer than 20 years. And in all my research, I’ve yet to find a place that CWD has ended all hunting and populations.

Like everything, much of it is blown way out of proportions by all sides. I think the truth is somewhere in the middle.

 

[dtrkyman]

Maybe, there are places in Wisconsin that if you shoot a buck you have a 50/50 shot of it having CWD.

Hasn't been in Wisconsin too long if you ask a biologist there.

 

[Wyo_hntr]

The sky isn't falling.

 

[johnnycake]

Lots of threads on CWD lately and I started researching it. I dont see how this doesnt end sport hunting in the next 20 years .

Any hope out there?

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I remember reading a lot of articles in the 90s saying that exact same thing. And yet, here we are

 

[Bubblehide]

And yet their continues to be a buildup of prions in areas of CWD; thus increasing the likelihood of CWD in larger proportions of the cervid populations in the future. Granted a reduced cervid population may likely negatively impact spread, until prion levels reach a high enough level.

 

[justin davis]

CWD has been around for a long time. It’s not an issue in my opinion. The issue is the game department’s slaughtering animals in the name of CWD. Like
In colorado. They think mature bucks spread CWD. So they want to kill off all the older bucks. What sense does that make?

Our biggest threat to hunting is not CWD but these anti hunting groups and democrats attacking our hunting rights.

 

[JRay]

I live and hunt near the epicenter of CWD in Colorado. Even after the attempted eradication of deer in this area, the deer herd here is still plentiful enough, that those I know and hunt with still fill tags on a regular basis.

In fact, I have a hunting buddy that’s been shooting and eating deer from this area for 15-20 years. During the culling years, when the then DOW was killing as many as possible, he’d kill and consume 2-3 deer per year.

The fawn recruitment and survival rate are sufficient enough to sustain a near 50% harvest rate in unit 191 for all rifle seasons combined (CPW 2022).

Per the CPW 2022-2023 CWD harvest/testing data; the infection rate in the units 9,19,191,7,8 (DAU 4) hovers around 5%. These are the units initially impacted by CWD. Thusly, they have been impacted the longest. What I don’t see in these units are large herds of deer. There are enough distributed water sources and feeding areas that the deer don’t congregate in large numbers which probably helps with limiting transmission. The population in this area is estimated at 15,000.

Go east of I25 to units 87,88,89,90,95 (DAU 5) with a population estimate of 2,500 and the deer herd is suffering an infection rate of around 30%. These animals in the AG and prairie lands tend to congregate around fewer water sources. As I understand it, this is considered a leading contributor to higher infection rates.

I’m familiar with a particular group of guys that took several deer on a ranch in DAU 5 and all deer (bucks and doe’s) tested positive for CWD. One appeared very sick at the time of harvest.

Many theories abound related to CWD infection/transmission rates and their causes. Anecdotally, it seems managing population rates relative to resource frequency and distribution may be the most significant tool in limiting infection rates.

 

[Maverick1]

Maybe, there are places in Wisconsin that if you shoot a buck you have a 50/50 shot of it having CWD.

Hasn't been in Wisconsin too long if you ask a biologist there.

CWD first appeared in WI over 20 years ago, in 2002. From April 2022-March 2023 the WI DNR reported 17,187 CWD test results in Wisconsin, including 1,492 positives. As of the spring of 2022, 60 of the state's 72 counties have had CWD detected in them or are considered "CWD-affected" by the DNR. In the area of Wisconsin where CWD has been found for about 20 years, many counties have a disease prevalence rate at or above 20%. Last year Iowa (28% of deer tested were CWD-positive), Richland (27%), Sauk (26%), Lafayette (21%) and Dane (20%) counties all topped that level.

2022 CWD Positive Locations in WI and IL

 

[Pacific_Fork]

It’s a complex and unfortunate situation no doubt. But an end to sport hunting in 20 years it is not. Been around for a long time. Like Travis said, the truth lies in the middle of each of the extreme opinions.

 

[kentuckybowman]

No

 

[LostArra]

Pop media articles about Zombie Deer! have an effect on uninformed and germaphobes especially after the COVID hysteria. Anti hunters couldn't have planned a better campaign than Zombie Deer.

 

[DanimalW]

Maybe, there are places in Wisconsin that if you shoot a buck you have a 50/50 shot of it having CWD.

Hasn't been in Wisconsin too long if you ask a biologist there.

According to our DNR, the first ones were identified in Dane County in 2001. In 2023, after the DNR’s attempt to kill every deer in every surrounding county through hunters (decimating the herd), there are still a lot of deer around ground zero. Still see plenty of trophy bucks taken from those areas, despite man and CWD’s best attempts.

Although a fatal disease, many deer live long enough to breed. Many of their offspring lives long enough to reach maturity and also breed. Perhaps through this process deer will become more genetically immune or resistant to CWD. I do understand how prions differ from bacterial and viral diseases, which many do not, but I still don’t see our entire deer herd being gone 20 years from now.

I also don’t disagree with the statement about 50% of the deer being infected with the disease in certain places. That’s an entirely different topic whether you feel comfortable consuming infected deer, and whether or not there will still be a hunt able population in the future.

 

[cuerro viejo]

Wake me up next big winter kill so we can blame CWD for population decline, only to watch it rebound, and then give praise to the winter storm due to slowing CWD transmission.

starting to think CWD was a resident tag strategy to deter NR hunters

 

[grfox92]

Based on the opinions of alot of people everytime this topic comes up, I would say there as either a lot of denial or people are very uneducated on the topic.

I've listened to a dozen or so long form conversations with some of the leading experts and researchers on CWD. All of those researchers think it's a big deal. All of them say, they will not knowingly eat a possitive animal, even though they recognize that human transmission hasent happened and technically shouldn't based on the prions on CWD.

If you are ok eating a possitive animal then I don't think it's something to worry about in our lifetime. If you won't eat a possitive animal I think you are in trouble in this life time.

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[lyingflatlander]

In Wisconsin it will change the dynamics of hunting in the future for sure. As things move forward I can see recreational property values leveling off or even falling in 20 years in the most infected areas. These are some of the best trophy properties in the state, I can’t see the demand hanging on as people will move to areas of lower infection. You might see a resurgence of camps in the northern part of the state where populations and price per acre are lower for various reasons because they harbor lower infection rates. It will be interesting to watch, but it won’t end hunting. I even suspect you might see those areas of high infection rates in the southwestern part of the state transform back to heavily managed upland bird hunting habitats like they probably were 40 or 50 years ago.

 

[5MilesBack]

Unless CWD were to suddenly wipe out every animal on the planet, I really doubt that it would end hunting. But even then.......when I was living in Iceland there were no fish through the winter (they migrate), but I was still out fishing frequently.......even knowing that there were no fish then. Having no fish there didn't end fishing for me. I'm sure I'd do the same with hunting. It's just nice being out enjoying God's creation as much as possible.

 

[Maverick1]

You might see a resurgence of camps in the northern part of the state where populations and price per acre are lower for various reasons because they harbor lower infection rates.

Highly unlikely. The northern part of the state has a decreasing herd. Many hunters are leaving those areas to hunt elsewhere due to the conditions. The only real part of the state where they are trying to increase the herd. No antlerless hunts or holiday hunts in Northern WI. And no significant antlerless tags issued in the “northern forest zone”. Those conditions are not going to attract hunters.

 

[mxgsfmdpx]

We eat pretty much only elk and venison year round. My cousin raises our beef and a half beef lasts us a year and half with all the venison and elk we are lucky to get every year. I'd rather eat meat with potential CWD than what they are pumping into the meat at the stores.