With hunting season just a few weeks away, Texas A&M AgriLife Extension and the Texas Wildlife Association are joining together to host a pair of webinars on Chronic Wasting Disease (CWD).
CWD is a fatal neurological disease that affects deer, elk, moose and other members of the cervid family. To date, Texas Parks and Wildlife Department (TPWD) and the Texas Animal Health Commission (TAHC) have reported positive CWD tests in captive deer in Lavaca and Medina County. There have been no reports of positive tests in wild white-tailed deer.
Dr. John Tomecek, AgriLife Extension wildlife specialist, will conduct the webinars at www.https://texas-wildlife.webex.com. Condensed versions of the webinars will be available on the wildlife association’s website, www.Texas-Wildlife.org, following the presentation.
“Hunters are the critical part of the monitoring and managing equation,” Tomecek said. “They can submit tissue samples from harvested deer and maintain healthy deer densities as wildlife managers have done for years. Knowing what’s going on in the countryside is the best way to prevent the spread of this disease should it crop up in wild white-tailed deer populations.”
The webinars cannot be viewed on handheld devices.
TPWD and TAHC are offering free testing of harvested deer for CWD this deer season. Texas Game Wardens will also be in the field with information on the disease for hunters. Additional information on CWD can be found in this story: http://www.texasfarmbureau.org/newsmanager/templates/DailyNews.aspx?articleid=22463&zoneid=1 or on the TPWD website, www.TPWD.State.TX.US.
The free webinars on CWD will be held from noon to 1 p.m. on Oct. 13 and Oct. 16.
For more information, contact Tomecek at 325-653-4576, tomecek@tamu.edu or the Texas Wildlife Association’s Clint Faas at 979-541-9803, cfaas@texas-wildlife.org .
White-tailed deer season opens Nov. 7.