MCD - 1,000 elk to be slaughtered in Colorado private herds

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http://www.boston.com/dailynews/264/nation/Disease_found_among_elk_in_sou:.shtml

Disease found among elk in southern Colorado; 1,000 in private herds will be destroyed

By Associated Press, 9/21/2001 18:06

DENVER (AP) About 1,000 elk in three private Colorado herds were found to be infected with a brain ailment called chronic wasting disease and will be destroyed.

One herd is in south-central Colorado, raising concerns the disease could spread into the state's renowned Western Slope elk and deer herds.

''We simply can't let it get away,'' said Russell George, director of the Colorado Division of Wildlife.

The other two herds are in the northern part of the state, where the disease has been present for decades.

Chronic wasting disease is a degenerative disorder that attacks the brains of deer and elk, causing unsteadiness, excessive slobbering, confusion and death.

There are no documented cases of the disease infecting humans. But it is closely related to mad cow disease, which is linked to a human brain-wasting disease, variant Creutzfeld Jakob disease, that has killed more than 100 Europeans.

All 1,000 elk will be slaughtered and tested for the disease, said Dr. Wayne Cunningham, a state veterinarian.

State wildlife officials say the transport of elk between ranches has spread the disease as far away as Saskatchewan, Montana and South Dakota.

Elk ranchers say their animals were infected by wild deer and blame the wildlife agency for not eradicating deer between Fort Collins and Cheyenne, Wyo., where the outbreak is believed to have started.

Elk are raised for meat and their velvety spring antlers, which can fetch as much as $70 per pound as a nutritional supplement.

-- Anonymous, September 21, 2001

Answers

SNIP The other two herds are in the northern part of the state, WHERE THE DISEASE HAS BEEN PRESENT FOR DECADES.

Chronic wasting disease is a degenerative disorder that attacks the brains of deer and elk, causing unsteadiness, excessive slobbering, confusion and death.

There are no documented cases of the disease infecting humans. But it is closely related to mad cow disease, which is linked to a human brain-wasting disease, variant Creutzfeld Jakob disease, that has killed more than 100 Europeans. [end snip]

I know for a fact that hunters have been warned to have the deer meat tested before they eat it. This was reported on a news program last year. This statement is just playing with words, imo: "There are no documented cases of the disease infecting humans."

-- Anonymous, September 22, 2001


Yep, the key word is documented.

-- Anonymous, September 22, 2001

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