Officials Declare Emergency as Rare “Zombie Deer” Disease Spreads through U.S.

Officials Declare Emergency as Rare “Zombie Deer” Disease Spreads through U.S.

At the end of last year, numerous reports came out about something called “zombie deer disease.”

The condition is also referred to as a chronic wasting disease (CWD) and has been reported in deer, elk, reindeer, sika deer, and moose, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). It has been reported in various locations across the country, and toward the end of last year, there was a case recorded in the iconic Yellowstone National Park.

A rare “zombie” disease that causes deer to excessively drool, droop their ears and become reluctant to move before eventually killing them has been detected in Yellowstone National Park for the first time, officials say. Once established, officials say there is “no effective way to eradicate” the fatal illness, called chronic wasting disease.

National Park Service officials said earlier this week the disease was found in a dead adult mule deer found near Yellowstone Lake. The deer had originally been captured in Cody, Wyoming, by the state’s Game and Fish Department in March as part of a population study, and according to a GPS collar that had been placed on the animal, officials said it died around mid-October.

“This is the first confirmed positive detection of the disease in Yellowstone National Park,” a press release from the government agency said, adding they conducted “multiple diagnostics tests” to confirm its presence.

There are now 244 confirmed cases in Mississippi, with 19 in Louisiana. The Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries declared an emergency.

Wildlife officials in Louisiana have declared an ‘emergency’ following an increase in the number of ‘zombie deers’.

Louisiana’s Department of Wildlife and Fisheries has reported a total of 19 deer now suffering with chronic wasting disease (CWD). The neurological illness has infected beasts staring into the distance and leaves them ‘extremely skinny’ and ‘aggressive’.

After a case of a CWD-carrying deer was reported in neighbouring state Mississippi in 2018, Louisiana biologists have been on high alert.

The pathogen causing the condition is a prion. A prion is a misfolded protein that can create misfolding of normal variants of the same protein and trigger cellular death. When this misfolding occurs in the brain, neurological problems occur. “Mad Cow” disease is probably the most famous of the prion diseases.

Currently, the prions creating zombie deer do not appear to affect humans. However, there are concerns the pathogen could evolve.

Recent studies have shown that the prions have the ability to infect and multiply in human cells in lab conditions – which has raised the prospect of a spillover.

It is thought that humans may contract the disease from eating infected venison, or via contact with contaminated soil and water.

Research suggest it is possible that prions attached to elements of the environment may cause prion properties to be modified, including how infectious it is and the potential to infect other animal species or even humans.

…The exact route of transmission is not fully understood, but it is thought that it is spread animal to animal by eating forage or water contaminated by infected feces or exposure to carcasses.

Direct contact, including saliva, blood, urine and even antler velvet during annual shedding may also contribute to the transmission of the pathogen.

As I do archery, I know several hunters who actually eat the game they catch. Currently, many hunters are aware of the illness, but are proceeding as usual.

Many hunters have wrestled with how seriously to take the threat of CWD. “The predominant opinion I encounter is that no human being has gotten this disease,” said Steve Rinella, a writer and the founder of MeatEater, a media and lifestyle company focused on hunting and cooking wild game.

They think, “I am not going to worry about it because it hasn’t jumped the species barrier,” Rinella said. “That would change dramatically if a hunter got CWD.”

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