Would you eat CWD positive meat?
Whitetail Deer
CWD has been found in 29 states and been around for a while. I believe we have been living with it for a long time, just not testing so we did not know. That's my personal opinion. According to our illustrious CDC there have been zero recored transmissions to humans. Yet on their site they recommend you do not eat meat that has tested positive for the disease.
So for this survey put yourself in this position and let me know what you would do. You harvest a whitetail buck, he's healthy and chasing doe's when you run a perfect arrow through him. He looks great on the hoof and in the freezer. Nothing strange or off during processing. You have him tested and the results come back "suspect/positve" so now you have to decide.....do you follow CDC recommendations and dispose of the meat or do you carry on and consume?
Yes. The best way to do this is NOT have your otherwise healthy deer tested.
Has anyone ever been infected by eating an animal with cwd? If yes - I am all ears. If no, then why is this even a question?
Yes, I'm sure I have since I've been living and hunting in the core endemic "hot zone" my whole life. Nobody I know gets anything tested except moose that are required.
If it was going to jump to humans, it would most likely present as CJDv. Our county has a lower percentage of CJDv than the national average.
So yes, I've undoubtedly consumed plenty since the mid-60s when it was discovered. A nonhunting woman I was talking with at a party last summer asked me, "Is that even a thing anymore? I thought it went away".
All that the information on the CDC website is designed to do is provide information. Their suggestions the content of which is meant to give people enough information to make their own informed decision. That being the case, everyone should gather information, and make their own decision based on that information.
I would SUSPECT that the prions would be killed in cooking but know that for sure.
I would guess with the percentage of animals that are infected a lot of people have. The last couple of years Colorado has has mandatory deer check in the GMU I hunt. I'm not sure what I will do if it does test positive?
As I understand it, the CWD prions of infected deer are not in muscle tissue. So, unless you routinely eat the brains, spinal cord, eyes, spleen, tonsils or lymph glands, I wouldn't worry about it.
Matt
I am pretty sure I have.
I won’t test anything if not required, though. I have no concerns eating an animal with CAD if it’s healthy.
It seems like the whole thing has been blown way out of proportion.
The current CPw response and plan is to kill all the mature mule deer bucks. Pretty sure that will do nothing more than further decimate the state’s mule deer.
Well there goes my tongue and spinal cord recipe.
I don't test and like Jaquomo, I live and hunt in ground zero. I understand if people won't eat it. We all have choices.
Outward symptoms only present in the final stages so how a critter appears isn't a good indication of whether they carry it.
Appearing healthy is not an indicator of whether or not a deer has CWD.
Takes 1500 degrees to eliminate the prions.
In my area the infection percentage has pretty much leveled off around 12%, according to what I've read. In places like Boulder County where Birkenstockers feed deer, the percentage is much higher because they effectively set up CWD "transmission stations".
You guys who enjoy baiting should do it while you can, because baiting is a transmission accelerator based on CPW studies, and your biologists will figure that out very soon.
The CWD “Chicken Littles“ are now migrating over to the PFAS doomsday hysteria. Everything is now PFAS
Got my Colorado mulie tested and ate the loin already before I've gotten results. The human race has been eating CWD for centuries.
Don’t ever plan to test one. Don’t know that it’s very prevalent around the house. But, it has been in other states I’ve hunted and killed deer in. I’ve never tested an elk from Colorado either. Just like the deer, I eat them and never gave it a seconds thought. Don’t imagine that will ever change
Probably not.
....
Read about prions They are pretty crazy. Essentially the only way to kill them is to heat them above 900deg for multiple hours. Not worth the risk for me.
Prions are not a living thing so you don’t “kill them.” They are a protein that is very stable and hard to denature even with heat.
I'm not sure on other states' protocol, but MO REQUIRES testing in certain counties. I'm assume this is what the original poster was inquiring about.
Personally, I wouldn't care and would eat it anyway, but that certainly wouldn't be the first time I've violated CDC guidelines and probably wouldn't be my last :)
Yes, same concept though.Prions are what cause mad cow disease among others
My son killed a buck on opening day of 2nd Rifle season [Oct 29] in a mandatory testing unit - We took the head into the CPW office in Hot Sulphur Springs that same day.
Still no results - I have the meat deboned and froze in my freezer. My son has already eaten the backstraps lol
Same as others, been in the “hot” zone many years and have eaten many from here. I don’t test and am not too concerned with it, except for the part where they want to destroy the mature buck population! Because we all know that younger bucks won’t take their place in the doe groups during the rut and continue spreading it:) at the end of this latest round of culling I predict the same percentage of transmission in my area. I hope I’m wrong, but either way the herd will suffer and take forever to rebound like last time.
no...at least not knowingly.
I killed a deer in a CWD test area a few years ago. It was not mandatory to test, but I had this deer tested. I won't ever do it again unless it is mandatory. I'm not going to be waiting for the sky to fall when it hasn't fallen in the last 50-60 years.
Again, I've read that the prion proteins are not in the muscle tissue that we typically eat. They are in the brains, spinal cord, eyes, spleen, tonsils or lymph glands. Furthermore, there is no evidence that CWD can be transmitted to humans.
Matt
It’s interesting that here in Michigan the baiting transmission is used by the DNR to make all baiting/mineral licks illegal. But then they allow it for the “Liberty” hunt and for anyone who is handicapped. So how bad is it really?? Like I tell my kids, you can’t have it both ways-it’s either bad for the herd and can’t be allowed or it’s not really bad for the herd and should be allowed. I’m not pro or anti baiting, I just think the optics of it are ridiculous.
If one tests positive and you don't want to eat it, remember to throw away your knives, saws, game bags, cooler, pack frame, truck bed and anything else that may have been contaminated.
40% bleach can be used to decontaminate surfaces. After you bleach some of the things you listed they may need thrown way anyway.
My understanding is that there are prions in meat but at a reduced level relative to the spine and certain organs. I have some in my biltong box as I type.
Not if known. Since most of mine is salami and sticks . Wife won't eat wild game and boy is gone so just me. A deer goes along way here. Not eating bats either.lol
What GG said X2. And I don't eat guts, so no problem!
I’ve heard that it makes your pelvic xrays …………uh……..abnormal. No proof, just a rumor. ;-)
I just saw a guy driving a Toyota Prion.
by looking at him, He looked severely impacted
OMG! Was he wearing a mask?? ;-)
Was he chronically wasted?
States need money, if a state has CWD they get Federal money.
Many of you seem to think that testing is for YOUR protection. The CPW and CDC has provided information and made their recommendation. Take it or leave it, they don't care. Game managers, however, prefer hunters voluntarily submit samples to protect our game populations. They already have a plan for how to deal with different rates of infection within populations and require testing in higher infection areas. More information can aid in making better decisions.
The worst impact I have seen from CWD was the result of the game managers plan in action. The only tool they have for CWD is culling. I don't think it was effective at accomplishing anything positive.
If the animal tested positive, there is no way I would eat it or share any with anyone.
Let's remember the history of BSE (Mad Cow Disease). Governments initially stated that it was safe to eat the meat from BSE positive cattle, and then had to scramble when it was proven that BSE did infect humans and many lost their lives because of this mistake.
Be aware CWD prions ARE in the meat too. CWD prions CANNOT be destroyed by heat. It is unknown if any people have been infected and have become sick from CWD, there are many suspected cases but no confirmed cases. Many jurisdictions in the USA and Canada are experiencing a sharp rise in TSE cases, mostly unexplained. Perhaps CWD IS infecting people already, or not. Are you willing to feed CWD meat to your kids?
I think that many don't give due concern to the issue of CWD. Perhaps and hopefully this disease turns out to be a nothingburger for both humans and the animals it can infect.
As we have seen so dramatically the last few years, a little evolution can have dramatic results. IF the CWD prion becomes infectious to humans, the whole landscape occupied by deer will quickly undergo a nightmare scenario. Wild deer will no longer exist as governments agencies have already committed to plans to eliminate all wild deer in the name of public safety.
This is not just about people eating infected deer. The bigger issue is CWD infected agricultural products. CWD from the soil is absorbed by crops such as wheat and corn. In conferences on public health, the doomsday scenario has been reviewed economically as to how the US would have to declare much of US agricultural land as toxic, countries around the world will no longer purchase these goods. This will produce an economic storm that has yet to be seen in history.
Even the game farming industry is watching CWD closely with drool and a lick of their lips. At these conferences, game farming spokespeople have anxiously indicated a desire to help with the depopulation of wild animals by becoming a reserve of clean land and animals. Want a deer, the only option is to buy one from a farmer.
Hopefully CWD is nothing more than a concern of wildlife health, one that these species can hopefully work through. However, CWD could be SO much worse. Let's not become complacent and write of the issue so easily. Hunters are smarter than that, I hope.
Unless required to do so I will not have an animal tested. I would not eat an animal that was sick, but otherwise I will not worry about it.
I as well live/hunt in CWD hotspot. Have been required to have two deer tested. I doubt I would eat if came back positive. But I don't test or worry about it if not required.
Nope probably have though
I never have but I think I gave my ex wife a deer that either had EHD or CWD. I got divorced around 20 years ago and it was as amicable as one could hope. Part of the agreement was that she got half of the venison in the freezer.
In mid September I was cutting wood about 3 miles from my house and entered the woodlot at daylight on my tractor. I jumped a buck and when he ran away it looked like there was something wrong with him. I shut the tractor off and got off the tractor and started to sneak through the brush to see if I could find him. He was piled up against a tree top and I could tell that something was wrong with him. I thought maybe he had been hit by a vehicle but he was a good 3/4 of a mile from the road.
I called the sheriff dept. and they sent a deputy out to shoot him and give me a road kill tag. I took the buck home and skinned him and could not find a single mark on him to indicate that he had been hit with a vehicle. I processed the deer myself and gave it to my ex as "her half of the venison."
The county I live in here in Michigan is now considered "a core CWD area" but at the time this all took place EHD was rarely seen here in Michigan and CWD was not even on the radar but knowing what I know now I am almost certain this buck had one or the other based on how he was acting the day I found him.
What Thornton said above, people been eating CWD animals for centuries.
The game farming was where this crap came from to begin with, although it wasn’t a commercial operation. More cwd has been found in high fences (in Texas) than ever in the wild. Our state doesn’t mind killing all the animals inside the fence when it’s found.
From what I have heard and read CWD is supposed to be in the siliva, urine, and feces also. If people are worried about CWD getting into crops would it not already be there. With the amount of crop damage caused by deer, wouldn't you think their would be deer silica on some with all the deer in Michigan what about all the urine and feces in the crop fields and orchards all these years. I believe it been around way before it was ever discovered. Mark
Buckhammer how did the science experiment turn out?
Blackbear, the prions stay in the soil indefinitely.
Funny how the more testing is done, the more states it which it appears. Norway slaughtered an entire reindeer herd for CWD, and they have no idea how it got there. Some scientists believe "spontaneous folding" of proteins may have created the infectious prions. But since they remain in the soil, any reindeer repopulating that area are likely to contract it unless they have natural immunity like all the uninfected, likely immune ones dying from .223 "lead poisoning" by frantic, panicking DNRs.
Jaquomo there was a high fence place near my house that had CWD in the herd. The DNR killed the whole herd and the owner is required to keep the high fence up to keep wild deer from the contaminated soil.
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6777796/
Bleach your tools
Haven't worried about CWD since mid 2000's when they proved it will NOT transmit to humans. In 2021 when checking my Co. bull moose head in I was asked if I wanted to have it tested for CWD and declined, it wasn't required. The CPW agent said he wouldn't have tested either unless it was required to for studies. Testing is a personal choice and one's own peace of mind, I'm not worried, and neither is my family so we don't test. So, Yes I would eat mine if it tested positive, but I inform any one else eating it so they can make their own choice.
Straight to the dumpster!
If you throw your deer away, QUIT HUNTING! Ever since CWD has hit the media all of you "WORRY WARTS" have gone CRAZY! I've eaten at least 7 positives since all this BS has been around! At 74 yrs. old, I am sure I've eaten plenty, I've been eating venison since the 60's! CWD is nothing MORE than a BIG SCAM for researchers to gain Gov. money! ADVISE me f ONE POSITIVE CASE of CWD! And those of you who claim or compare CWD to MAD COW, SHOW ME AGAIN ONE POSITIVE CASE! IF you don't eat your deer, your ONE POOR EXCUSE for a SPORTSMAN!
You're going to need to use "all caps"...not just "some caps"...if you expect anyone to take you seriously
Looks like somebody’s had too much coffee this morning
"Looks like somebody’s had too much coffee this morning" Maybe it's the CWD in the system interacting with the caffeine.
one person confirmed to eat positive cwd deer. One crazy caps lock post....coincidence? JK jk jk.
Adam I was thinking similarly........a lot of guys claim they "probably" have or they haven't tested but "assumed" they have. I get that and tend to agree but my question was would you eat one that you KNEW had tested positive. Only one so far to have a deer tested/confirmed positive and consumed.
There's a line between "tough" and "dumb"
There is also a saying. “If your going to be dumb you gotta be tough”.
To answer the OP’s question. No I have never had one tested and then ate. To be honest I haven’t had any tested since the early 2000’s and they came back negative.
Had one tested in Minnesota back then. Deer was acting strange. Had one tested one year when I hunted NW of Fort Collins. I think they had mandatory testing back then up there.
It apparently made the jimp to Stix, and is presenting ad severe TDS. Can we implement TDS testing for Bowsiters?
You beat me to it Lou. Lol!
What does Dr. Fauci suggest we do in these cases he will know what is best.
No. I killed a nice Eastern CO public land whitetail in 2009 (scored just under 150) that appeared as healthy as any deer could be. The test came back as strong positive. A significant reason we hunt is to procure better, healthier meat than commercially grown. If that's in doubt, why would we eat it?
Seems like that was a really good choice after reading bobbinhood's post.
You guys realize millions of humans have been eating CWD for decades, probably centuries and there has been ZERO transmission to humans. They even followed a group for over a decade that ate a known infected deer at a barbecue and none acquired CWD. Last I read, only one species of monkey acquired CWD after eating infected meat. You're more likely to die from something you ate at a restaurant or the grocery store.
Maybe start a restaurant chain called CWD's and see how it pans out?
Dunno, Kyle. "Runza" seems to be pretty popular.
I’ve eaten street meat in a dozen 3rd world countries. Still here. Without major issues.
Ok, so my wife may disagree with that last statement
So here we are....my wife killed a deer last night in a mandatory testing unit. CPW is currently running about a month out on getting results back. So the deer will all be processed, vaccuum sealed, and some eaten by the time the results come back.
So for the "no" hunters, do you throw all those beautiful vaccuum sealed packages of carefully trimmed meat into a dumpster somewhere if the results come back positive in a month? I just asked my wife and her response was "Hell no! We're eating it."
I just kill my deer and to the the butcher. Never tested, what you don't know won't hurt you.
Lou, We butcher and package all our own game. And yes, if we test an animal (mandatory, or voluntary) we don't eat it until the test comes back. We generally have enough other meat in the freezer to last at least that long. If it comes back positive, it gets disposed of by whatever method CPW recommends. I suppose we could donate it to a food pantry. Oh wait, they won't take it, even though they no doubt need it way more than we do and it's been "proven" safe.
Knowingly? No! The area I hunt has spotty cases but I get my deer tested by the state. If infected it goes to the dogs and I go get another. No cases known of human infection but why chance it. Deer meat is eaten rare so your not killing all the "germs" so why chance it.
Knowingly? No! The area I hunt has spotty cases but I get my deer tested by the state. If infected it goes to the dogs and I go get another. No cases known of human infection but why chance it. Deer meat is eaten rare so your not killing all the "germs" so why chance it.
"As long as you wear a mask while eating it you will be fine." says Dr Fuchy
Kuru or cwd? I don't eat brain. Not even head cheese. It hasn't even spread to humans. Not sickly it get ate.
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We just became a CWD County.
Mandatory testing only first two days of rifle.
wackmaster2 , I could have sworn it was Dr Ruth that said that ? ........
DAMN, I didn't realize there were so many "SHEEP" on this site! Kind of like "FREE GUN ZONE"!
bobbinhood, I'd like to find a free gun zone. Don't want no part of a gun free zone though. :) Sorry, I couldn't resist.
LBshooter, so you don't care if you infect your dogs with CWD? That seems pretty cruel.
I give it two weeks to slow the spread, then I eat it.
Knowingly- no way. I don’t test mine though. If I was starving I would, but that’s the only scenario.
Even if you were the first to contract CWD, you’ve got a higher likelihood of dying from something totally unrelated before it killed you. That said, I don’t really have a problem with it but I wouldn’t feed it to my family/friends without telling them first.
I was taking the skull off a bull carcass in Wyoming this weekend and had spinal fluid drip all over me. Cwd did cross my mind when I did it but only for a brief second and more in a laughing matter.
Mad Yooper Disease has a nice ring to it.
Can't eat CWD deer or you might get mad cow. Can't eat a rare deer steak or you might go blind. Better look into that synthetic stuff to be safe.
There's other reasons I'll go blind Midwest.
I’ll never understand the folks who are afraid of eating the parts of a critter where CWD doesn’t concentrate, yet apparently have no issues removing heads, skull capping, caping, boiling, power washing, etc. As Yooper eluded to, in the event that bull was positive, he was probably exposed to far more prions than simply eating a roast off the hindquarter. If you’re afraid of eating it you really have no business hunting anywhere it’s found. Further, feeding it to your dogs when you won’t touch it is just plain stupidity.
X1 KB, My opinion your just wasting hard earned great organic meat for nothing. The media did a good job fear mongering CWD as they do everything else. The studies have been done and concluded the meat of CWD infected animals is safe, but the 'officials' err on the safe side of being accused/sued and tell us that 'maybe you shouldn't eat it' and give you the option. If it was in anyway dangerous to humans they would makes us hold the meat, or take the meat from you, right!
Yeah, if it was in any way dangerous to humans deer/elk/moose would be eradicated. Further, the much scarier scenario to me than the wanton wasters on here potentially contracting it, is the aftermath that plays out when/if it jumps to cattle. You get a mad cow outbreak in the Sandhills or eastern Montana and you can bet there won’t be a cervid left within hundreds of miles shortly after. Then this site would be strictly politics. :)
Last year we found a small four point buck dead;no holes and none of the neighbors said they had shot;we suspect EHD(was in the general area).I put a game camera on it all last winter;nothing would touch it ;but a red tail hawk picked at it a bit.Had coyotes,foxs,skunks investigate but would not eat.Most dead deer don't last more than a day or two normally,
We took my wife's deer head in today because her unit is "mandatory". The two young female techs told her how to find out if it is positive in 4-6 weeks. She told them we don't care, that we will have eaten a bunch of it by then. They looked at each other and giggled, then looked back at her and nodded. I suspect that's a common response from hunters who live and hunt in the core hot zone for 60 years. Much ado about nothing.
