Chronic wasting disease detected in Johnston County deer, 23rd case found in NC

A deer in Johnston County tested positive for chronic wasting disease, the N.C. Wildlife Resources Commission confirmed Friday, marking the first case of the fatal illness around the Triangle.

Chronic wasting disease has a 100% fatality rate for deer, elk and moose. It attacks the brain, causing microscopic holes in the tissue that eventually kill the animals.

“Now more than ever we need the cooperation of sportsmen and sportswomen. We need to continue to test as many hunter-harvested deer as possible to determine the distribution of CWD in our state and how many deer are infected,” Brad Howard, the Wildlife Resources Commission’s wildlife management division chief, said in a statement.

The deer that tested positive was a 3 1/2-year-old female white-tailed deer that was killed during the ongoing archery season.

Chronic wasting disease had previously been found in the state’s northwestern corner, with five confirmed cases in Surry County, two in Yadkin County and one apiece in Stokes and Wilkes counties. A case had also previously been confirmed in Cumberland County.

From the time of infection, chronic wasting disease takes at least 16 months to become evident. That incubation period means an animal can be spreading the disease for more than a year before developing symptoms.

CWD symptoms can include stumbling, lack of coordination, drooling or walking in repetitive patterns. Animals may also lack fear of humans and have drooping ears, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Once symptoms become clear, the animal steadily loses weight until it dies.

None of the deer that have tested positive in North Carolina have shown visible symptoms, Greg Batts, a Wildlife Resources Commission biologist whose district includes Johnston County, told The News & Observer.

“Every deer that we have had that’s tested positive was walking out in the environment looking perfectly healthy to the eye,” Batts said.

Deer tend to have core ranges where they feed and sleep, but bucks will roam further during the mating season. Those home ranges vary depending on habitat from less than a square mile to more than three square miles, according to North American Whitetail magazine.

Chronic wasting disease is believed to spread through bodily fluids of the deer, including saliva, urine and scat. The N.C. Wildlife Resources Commission said the prions that cause infection can remain active in soil for years or decades.

Typically, prions remain on the landscape for 14 or 15 years, Batts said. They can survive very hot and very cold temperatures and are easily transported.

The deer in Johnston County, for example, spread prions every time it licked another deer, urinated or defecated. And those prions are going to remain on the landscape for years.

“They are dropping those prions out into the environment. They’re just laying there until another deer comes along, picks up an acorn, eats a blade of grass and then it gets into their system, starts replicating and then we have chronic wasting disease in the deer,” Batts said.

Chronic wasting disease is similar to mad cow disease or scrapie, which affects sheep and goats. It’s caused by abnormal proteins, or prions, that attack normal cellular proteins typically found in the brain. Prions are basically indestructible — superheating them to above 900 degrees F for several hours is the only way to destroy them.

Batts likened the prions that cause chronic wasting disease to misshapen paper clips. Those proteins no longer serve the purpose they are supposed to.

Instead, Batts told The News & Observer, they impact the brain stem right where it meets the brain, causing holes in the tissue.

“What it’s doing is it’s disconnecting the brain from the rest of the body so they lose their motor skills. That’s why they start walking in circles, head down, they can’t eat. They’re losing their motor skills.”

The CDC said chronic wasting disease doesn’t seem to impact cattle or domesticated animals.

There have also been no cases in humans, but the Wildlife Resources Commission recommends that people avoid eating deer that look sick and avoid eating organs like the brain, eyes, lymph nodes or spleen from any deer. The commission also recommends that hunters wear gloves when handling those parts and use designated tools to remove them that are then disinfected after each use.

The impact of chronic wasting disease on deer population becomes clear over the course of decades, as the disease becomes more prevalent and does die more frequently before they can reproduce.

The Wildlife Resources Commission fact sheet said, “CWD has the potential to greatly impact North Carolina’s deer and elk populations and the tradition of deer hunting in our state. Robust testing is our most powerful tool to identify CWD wherever it occurs on the landscape and to inform management decisions toward effectively managing the prevalence and spread of disease.”

Wildlife Resource Commission rules include prohibitions on taking whole carcasses out of areas where chronic wasting disease has been detected, as well as limits on moving carcasses from surrounding counties.

The commission is not immediately changing rules for Johnston County, Howard said, because there is an ongoing hunting season. But the county will become a primary surveillance area, meaning whole carcasses and parts where the disease can concentrate like brains and lymph nodes should be left there or taken to a processor, when possible.

“Deer hunters must be vigilant and mindful of carcass disposal. The last thing we want to do is inadvertently move it to a new location. We continue to stress to don’t give it a ride,” Howard said in a statement.

Hunters who take a deer in Bladen, Cumberland, Harnett, Hoke, Robeson and Sampson counties between Nov. 11 and Nov. 26 must submit a sample for testing within two weeks, which can be done by dropping the deer head off at a WRC freezer — there are locations throughout the state — going to a Wildlife Resources Commission check station or taking parts to a taxidermist or processor that is part of the Cervid Health Cooperator Program. The same rules will apply to the northwestern part of the state where chronic wasting disease was detected between Nov. 18 and Dec. 3.

The CDC recommends that humans avoid eating meat from deer that are infected with chronic wasting disease. It typically takes four to six weeks for test results to come back, Batts said.

If a hunter kills a deer that appears sick, the Wildlife Resources Commission asks that you leave the deer and call either the local wildlife biologist or the Wildlife Resources Commission’s helpline at 1-866-318-2401.

This story was produced with financial support from the Hartfield Foundation and the 1Earth Fund, in partnership with Journalism Funding Partners, as part of an independent journalism fellowship program. The N&O maintains full editorial control of the work.