In response to recent cases of Chronic Wasting Disease (CWD) in deer breeding facilities, the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department (TPWD) is revamping its approach to CWD surveillance zones. Dr. Hunter Reed, TPWD wildlife veterinarian, presented proposed amendments aimed at optimizing surveillance and containment efforts during a commission hearing.
Texas Parks and Wildlife Department Implements New Strategies
The amendments focus on scenarios where CWD is detected solely in captive breeding facilities but not in any associated release sites. If certain conditions are met, TPWD will no longer establish a CWD surveillance zone. These conditions include early detection of the disease, knowledge of the transmission mechanism and pathway, prompt depopulation of the facility after detection, and no evidence of compromised free-ranging deer populations.
However, in cases where any of the criteria are not met, TPWD will proceed with the establishment of a CWD surveillance zone. Within these zones, the movement of live deer will be restricted, and hunters will be required to bring their harvested deer to check stations for CWD testing before leaving the zone. Additionally, strict carcass movement restrictions will be enforced to prevent the spread of CWD through infected tissues.
The proposed amendments introduce a containment zone around the infected premise through a Texas Animal Health Commission (TAHC) hold order or quarantine. A surveillance zone will then be established two miles from the infected premise’s perimeter. All properties encompassed by the surveillance zone will be subject to mandatory testing and carcass movement restrictions.
The surveillance zone will remain in effect until certain conditions are met, including depopulation of the infected deer breeding facility or the lifting of the quarantine by the Texas Animal Health Commission. A minimum of three hunting seasons must have passed since depopulation or the quarantine’s lifting, and area sampling must have been completed to achieve a 95% detection probability.
TPWD is proposing the creation of nine new CWD surveillance zones across eight counties: Gillespie, Limestone, Uvalde, Zavala, Gonzales, Hamilton, Washington, and Frio counties. Additionally, surveillance zones in Duval, Medina, Bandera, and Uvalde counties will be reduced to align with the new rules.
Proper Disposal
To ensure accessibility, TPWD is proposing mandatory deer check stations outside surveillance zones if public locations are not available within the zone. The department plans to publicize the new check station locations and inform landowners accordingly.
Furthermore, hunters will be permitted to take the head of CWD-susceptible species, such as white-tailed deer, mule deer, and elk, outside surveillance zones if no check station is available within the zone. However, this allowance will require immediate transportation of the head via the shortest available route to the nearest TPWD check station.
Proper disposal methods for the heads after CWD testing at check stations will be prescribed, including options like taking the head to a taxidermist, the property of harvest, or a landfill permitted by the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality.
By implementing these new strategies, TPWD aims to strengthen its CWD surveillance efforts and safeguard the health of Texas’ deer populations from this debilitating neurological disease.