CWD safe to eat or not?

[M70375!]

I wouldn’t. Maybe feed it to the dogs?

I don't want to risk my dog getting it

 

[Hogpatrol]

In Pennsylvania, antlerless deer licenses are by WMU and usually sold out by now. Three WMUs still have them available and they are in CWD zones. It's jumped the Susquehanna river and is in one county over from the two WMUs I hunt. Agree it's the biggest threat to big game hunting in my lifetime.

 

[Altitude sickness]

Are we saying that thousands of hunters have not killed CWD positive animals before testing was available? Or in areas that don’t test. And then eaten CWD positive meat? With no known consequences.

 

[Safari Dave]

No way!

 

[Hogpatrol]

Are we saying that thousands of hunters have not killed CWD positive animals before testing was available? Or in areas that don’t test. And then eaten CWD positive meat? With no known consequences.

https://vet.ucalgary.ca/news/chronic-wasting-disease-may-transmit-humans-research-finds

 

[Safari Dave]

CWD just recently appeared in Georgia (USA).

I think this is good information:

Chronic Wasting Disease Management | Department Of Natural Resources Division

The Georgia Department of Natural Resources’ Wildlife Resources Division (WRD) is actively managing CWD through hunter and landowner participation, required carcass disposal, and expanded testing in the CMA. Hunters must follow the new carcass disposal rule and out-of-state carcass import rules...

georgiawildlife.com

 

[Datchew]

Prions are not destroyed by cooking and they are highly transmissible. Prions really came to light in the scientific community when it was discovered in the brains of the Fore people who were suffering from the degenerative neurological disease called Kuru. The Fore were cannibalistic and would eat their dead ritualistically and thats how the disease was transmitted. We know that human-human transmission happens the only question is about deer/elk/cattle-human transmission. There is some circumstantial evidence that it can/has occurred and I think most people who know more than just what they have read on internet forums think that it does happen. I think that CWD is the biggest threat to sport hunting there is even beyond habitat loss. I wouldnt eat an animal with CWD. There are things that can happen to you that are worse than dying and having CJD/CWD is one of those things...

Fascinating. Thx for the info

I dug up info on this as well. They don't denature like typical proteins. Similar to virus "hard casings" that allow them to survive chemical attack, these babies need temperature enough to anneal soft metals to break down.

Pretty impressive.

 

[Biddleman]

. There are things that can happen to you that are worse than dying and having CJD/CWD is one of those things...

My wife's aunt had CJD. Best way I can describe her condition was she was a zombie. Empty, distant stare. "Lights on but no one is home." Im not sure if lights were even on. Total zombie like state. I saw image of her brain, looked like swiss cheese.
It's not like some sort of dementia. The prion can live in your brain for decades before showing itself.
As far as destroying a prion, even cremating someone will not destroy it.
Supposedly CJD can be/ has been transmitted by people eating sheep and squirrels that were infected. So I personally wouldnt eat an animal testing positive CWD.

 

[steve white]

Squirrels?
Another thought for consideration: if the prions are in the spinal cord, how far do they range from there? Both the interior filets and the back straps are right next to the spine and nobody throws that away. Plus it would be easy to nick the spinal cord with a sharp knife. What about boning neck meat if there are lymph nodes in there somewhere?
I know that things have relaxed in England concerning eating beef with a sawed bone. Many people think it tastes better and were ready to re-indulge as soon as permitted.

 

[Tgood1]

As known im somewhat ignorant of cwd issues as im not in a cwd zone, yet. I asked my biologist buddy here about it, granted he specializes in quail, grouse and turkey, he rolled his eyes and exact words were, " don't get me started, sick animals are sick, use common sense" I left it at that