A Closer Look at CWD in Texas Deer

Scientists believe chronic wasting disease is likely spread between animals through direct contact with things like saliva, blood, urine or feces or indirectly through environmental contamination of soil, food or water. The disease was first found in Texas a decade ago.

The TPW Commission enacted enhanced surveillance regulations in November 2021 to close some gaps in finding and eliminating chronic wasting disease in white-tailed deer. Controversial? Yes. Needed? TWA says yes.

Article by ELLEN H. BRISENDINE

Ten years ago, a free-ranging mule deer in the Hueco Mountains in Far West Texas was found to have chronic wasting disease (CWD), a fatal degenerative neurological condition.

“The disease has since been detected in free-ranging mule deer, white-tailed deer, and elk in Dallam and Hartley counties, located in the northwest Panhandle,” according to “CWD in Texas” on tpwd.texas.gov. “The first case of CWD in Texas white-tailed deer was found in a Medina County deer breeding facility in 2015 as a result of routine disease monitoring.”

CWD is a transmissible spongiform encephalopathy disease in cervids. It is similar to scrapie in sheep and to bovine

spongiform encephalopathy (mad cow disease) in cattle. CWD prions are highly contagious and are most commonly detected in the neural and lymphatic tissue of CWD-susceptible species.

Animal protein producers in the U.S. aggressively watch for diseases and follow strict testing protocols, regulated by state and national animal health agencies, to identify and remove infected livestock before diseased meat can enter the food chain.

Today, CWD in white-tailed deer and other cervid species has been documented in deer populations in 30 states and three Canadian provinces. Recently, CWD-positive white-tailed deer have been found in formerly CWD-free Alabama, Louisiana, and North Carolina.

Texas Parks and Wildlife Department (TPWD) and Texas Animal Health Commission (TAHC) work together to keep CWD from spreading in Texas.

The tools the agencies use are tests, tests and more tests to find and remove CWD-positive deer, which accomplishes surveillance. Management and containment of the disease are accomplished through rules that restrict movement of live deer and carcasses from higher-risk areas of the state.

Events in 2021 showed the regulations put in place in 2016 by the Texas Parks and Wildlife (TPW) Commission were not enough to control the spread of CWD. Amendments to those original regulations were not enough.

The agency scientists submitted additional regulations for public comment in 2021, and the TPW commissioners passed those regulations to enhance TPWD’s surveillance of whitetailed deer at the November 2021 commission meeting.

The Honorable Ana Gallo, Laredo, has served on the TPW Commission since 2015. As published in the transcripts of that November 2021 commission meeting, she said, “I’m one of two commissioners that was here in 2016 when we really deliberated and listened to every stakeholder that we could and took the information that we had and tried to make the best decision that we could; but unfortunately, those decisions we made and those decisions that we amended, didn’t contain the disease. And so that’s why we’re here today with these new rules in front of us.”

Photo by Cissy Beasley

White-tailed deer are the capstone species in the world of Texas hunting which is why chronic wasting disease is a concern for everyone in wildlife circles. How to best deal with the disease and stop its spread is controversial, however. Regardless of how a person is involved in the world of white-tailed deer, they are passionate about the species.

THE CONTROVERSY

The CWD regulations are controversial because they are strict, sometimes difficult, and are an added operating expense for landowners who operate captive white-tailed deer breeding facilities.

Very simply, white-tailed deer managed in captive deer breeding facilities must be tested before being released or transported for release. Hunters who harvest deer in a designated CWD Containment or Surveillance Zone are required to submit samples for testing at various TPWD stations. The complete regulations can be found at tpwd.texas.gov.

One side says the regulations are not enough. Some in this camp say the deer breeding facilities manage deer like livestock to improve certain genetic traits, and those businesses that transport deer to be released at hunting sites should be prohibited. All native species should be allowed to roam free in their habitats.

The middle says the surveillance required by the regulations is working because new cases of CWD are being found and dealt with. Diligence in eradicating this disease must not be relaxed.

The other side says the regulations are too much, too expensive, not needed, and that they have the right to conduct business as they see fit on their private property.

WHY ENHANCE SURVEILLANCE?

Three deer breeding facilities, which were enrolled in the federal and state animal health agencies’ CWD Herd Certification Program, were found to have CWD-positive deer in the spring of 2021.

Two of these facilities were in Uvalde County, the third was on the border of Hunt and Kaufman counties.

The owners of these facilities had been diligent in their management, and still, “Tests indicated CWD had likely been present for at least two years prior to being found in 2021,” according to the TPWD report, “Chronic Wasting Disease in Texas Deer Breeding Facilities: 2021 Discoveries and Response,” released Oct. 27, 2021.

Deer from these three facilities had been transported to 178 other facilities within the previous five years, according to the report. Deer at two of those 178 facilities tested positive for

CWD and by August 2021, a total of seven CWD-positive sites had been documented for 2021, reports TPWD.

Since September 2019, 220 deer had been transferred from that initial CWD-positive Uvalde County facility to “36 other deer breeding facilities and release sites in Texas,” according to the report.

The report continues, explaining the potential for what can be described as an ever-widening distribution of white-tailed deer that may have been exposed to CWD from these sites.

Since TPWD’s mission is to “manage and conserve the natural and cultural resources of Texas and to provide hunting, fishing and outdoor recreation opportunities for the use and enjoyment of present and future generations,” this agency is responsible for white-tailed deer and other native cervid species.

Because CWD continues to elude eradication, TPW commissioners approved regulations proposed by agency staff to enhance disease surveillance requirements at deer breeding facilities to aggressively search for and remove CWD-positive deer.

WHAT IS TEXAS WILDLIFE ASSOCIATION’S POSITION?

In August 2021, Texas Wildlife Association (TWA) published a position statement on the detection of CWD earlier that year. The association stated it was “deeply concerned about the recent detection of Chronic Wasting Disease (CWD) in six (6) permitted deer breeding facilities. CWD represents an existential threat to rural economies, hunting-related businesses (including deer breeders), and an important natural resource. The Texas Parks and Wildlife Department (TPWD) and Texas Animal Health Commission (TAHC) are currently working on permanent rules to monitor and manage this disease.

“TWA is concerned about CWD and how its spread might impact landowners, hunters, business owners, and outdoor enthusiasts. TWA supports TPWD and the TAHC in adopting strong science-based rules to stop the spread of CWD.

“The greatest risk of spreading CWD comes from moving or releasing live animals, thus TWA supports the requirement that ante-mortem testing (live test) of all breeder deer before their release must become a permanent rule. TWA also supports the position that a permanent ID (tag) clearly visible from a distance should be required for all released deer.”

Justin Dreibelbis, TWA CEO, expanded on this position statement. “We take CWD seriously because it is bigger than a few deer dying. Our state has such a thriving rural economy, and we know that hunting is a big part of it,” he said.

“Towns like Llano, Mason, Freer, and others are bustling during the opening days of hunting season. People come in from all over the state and country to participate in an activity that celebrates the natural resources of those areas. It scares me to death to think about a disease taking away those opportunities and what would ultimately happen to our rural communities and to our state economy.”

Marko Barrett, San Antonio, TWA past president and chair of TWA’s Big Game Committee, said, “White-tailed deer are the keystone species for landowners in Texas.” While every species

The future of hunting rests with the young. But hunting is being challenged on many fronts, both from within and from outside of hunting circles. Chronic wasting disease is a controversial challenge that Texas hunters and the agencies and groups that serve and protect hunting must address.

Photo by Joseph Richards

It’s a sight anyone who is passionate about white-tailed deer loves to see—a healthy buck surveying his surroundings. To keep deer healthy and stem the spread of chronic wasting disease, TPWD annually tests deer for the disease’s presence. The number of samples have increased each year to a recent total of more than 14,000 for the 2021-22 hunting season.

Photo by Russell A. Graves

How much of a threat is chronic wasting disease? It’s hard to speculate, but one of the main reasons TWA cares about the disease is the negative effect it could have on landowners, rural communities and our state economy. Hunting is important to all three.

is important, white-tailed deer garner the most attention and interest, he added.

Dreibelbis added, “People care deeply about white-tailed deer in the state of Texas, there is no doubt about it. You can count me in that group, too. It’s a big part of our hunting culture. They represent a lot of important things for a Texan, and so people get very passionate” about any issue relating to the species.

“We’re extremely concerned about CWD in white-tailed deer in our state,” he said, referring to the TWA leaders and members. “We know that the riskiest thing we do when it comes to managing deer in Texas, from a disease standpoint, is putting live animals in trailers and moving them up and down the highway. We believe each time a deer is loaded into a trailer, we need to be as safe as possible. We constantly advocate for that safety.

“Have we disagreed with the deer breeding industry on some of those TPWD rule requirements? Absolutely,” he said, “but not because we’re anti deer breeding. We are simply concerned with how big an issue this disease may become and are trying to make sure that we are being as careful as we can,” he explained. “The landowners, hunters and deer herd of Texas deserve that safety net.”

TWA members serving on the Big Game Committee, and others, studied the science of the disease and the surveillance and testing regulations proposed by TPWD.

TWA President Sarah Biedenharn, San Antonio, appreciates those committee members for their diligence and hard study of the issue. “This is a subject that is hard to grasp. Several TWA members have spent the time figuring these issues out and have been great resources for our members.”

Dreibelbis agreed, saying, “Our advisory committees are made up of diverse members who have varying backgrounds, and are experts in various fields. They sort through proposed regulations and develop a draft position on how TWA supports or requests changes to proposed regulations. That, then, is moved up to our Executive Committee, where they review it and ultimately vote on our direction.

“That’s a thing I’m proud of when TWA comes out with a strong position statement. It’s not just thrown together. The association’s positions are carefully deliberated and developed,” he explained.

TWA has always been a strong advocate for private property rights. “That’s what we’re based on, that’s what all our decisions are based on. However, white-tailed deer in the state of Texas (being a native species) are owned by the citizens of Texas. They’re managed by TPWD in the public trust,” Dreibelbis said.

Controversy arises when landowners who are permitted to hold white-tailed deer in a captive breeding facility trade and transport those animals, potentially and innocently spreading CWD to a widening population of free-ranging white-tailed deer.

Dreibelbis said, “We feel TPWD has done a good job in a very tough situation here, of managing this process. One of the things I like is that they’re continually following up to make sure that the regulations that are in place are working. And when they’re not, they’re jumping back on it to tighten things up.

“A lot of CWD testing occurs in captive herds, but something that gets overlooked is how much CWD monitoring is done outside of the pen. There’s a significant number of hunterharvested deer that are tested each year,” he said.

HOW MANY DEER ARE TESTED?

Mitch Lockwood, Big Game Program director for the Wildlife Division of TPWD, said when the first set of CWD regulations went into effect in 2015, 10,000 samples were collected from hunter-harvest deer as well as road kills. The number of samples have increased each year to a recent total of more than 14,000 for the 2021-22 hunting season.

He complimented the Managed Land Deer Program (MLDP) participants for their help in monitoring CWD. “Our MLDP cooperators really stepped up in a big way, voluntarily, and have provided a lot of samples. In fact, they’ve provided 30% of those hunter-harvest samples.”

MLDP supports landowners who want to “foster and support sound management and stewardship of native wildlife and wildlife habitats on private lands in Texas. Deer harvest is an important aspect of habitat management and conservation. Landowners enrolled in either the MLDP Harvest Option or Conservation Option are able to take advantage of extended season lengths and liberalized harvest opportunities,” according to tpwd.texas.gov.

The MLDP harvest represents about 21% of the statewide white-tailed deer harvest, Lockwood said. “Basically, they’re sampling at a disproportionately high rate. It’s awesome the way they’ve stepped up in helping with this effort.”

Owners of deer breeding facilities also conduct CWD surveillance. Based on testimony from members of the deer breeding community at the March 2022 TPW Commission meeting, Lockwood said they have submitted about 20,000 test samples since summer 2021.

He added that while very few CWD-positive deer were found through those test samples, “43% of all deer breeders didn’t release deer last fall; therefore, they haven’t done that live testing that was anticipated. That’s almost half of the permit holders for which we still don’t have that heightened surveillance. We thought the surveillance would cover the whole deer breeding community by the beginning of the fall. We really didn’t contemplate that 43% of them would not be releasing deer that year, and therefore wouldn’t be doing that testing.”

Lockwood said the rigorous testing program has not uncovered CWD-positive white-tailed deer in any new areas of Texas. Some positives were found in the northwest Panhandle, in the Trans-Pecos, but “noting unexpected,” he said. Three more CWD-positive deer were found in Medina County, “in free-range or low-fence sites.”

Lockwood points out that no new cases have been found at Del Rio, where three CWD-positive deer were discovered in earlier years. “We have looked really hard in that very specific focal area,” he said. Samples came from hunter-harvested deer and from close to 200 deer trapped within a two-mile radius of where those three deer were found.

WHY SUCH CLOSE ATTENTION TO A FAIRLY RARE DISEASE?

Chronic wasting disease is incurable and fatal.

Research indicates it is caused by a misfolded prion protein. According to the Microbiology Society, “A prion is a type of protein that can cause disease in animals and humans by triggering normally healthy proteins in the brain to fold abnormally.

“The prion mode of action is very different to bacteria and viruses as they (prions) are simply proteins, devoid of any genetic material,” reported the Society.

The name of the disease is descriptive. Infected deer become listless, suffer appetite loss, drooling and weight loss—they waste away.

A lot is known about the disease. A great deal is not known. But Barrett points out one known fact: “Once the animal gets it, the disease is always fatal. It seems to always be in the environment once it’s there. There is always a threat of it being present when it has been found in an area. With that in mind, I think all anybody’s been able to do is try to limit the spread” of the disease.

Biedenharn agreed, “I didn’t realize just how hard it is to get rid of the disease. Prions live in the ground or on whatever they touch for a very long time. They are not something you can clean off with water and a little soap. It is disconcerting to learn that prions that cause CWD are very, very hard to get rid of in the environment.”

Barrett added, “TPWD’s task is to protect the wildlife for all the people of the state. They’ve had to make tough choices to stay on their mission. They’ve been very good at having landowner partners working with them on this issue, but it has been difficult to have to inconvenience their partners to do the right thing for wildlife.”

He encouraged every community involved with white-tailed deer to take a neighborly approach to this issue. “Landowners are going to have to work together on their choices for wildlife management. Neighbors deserve to know what’s moving into their neighborhood. High fences are an impediment to the movement of the disease, but they’re not a perfect barrier,” since CWD may be transmitted in various ways. Scientists believe CWD proteins (prions) likely spread between animals through body fluids like feces, saliva, blood, or urine, either through direct contact or indirectly through environmental contamination of soil, food or water, according to the Centers for Disease Control.

“So when people move deer, they need to think about not just themselves, but about their neighbors. Realize that when you move deer, you run the risk of moving this disease around,” Barrett said.

Dreibelbis said, “White-tailed deer and hunting are important to all of us for various reasons. We owe it to ourselves, to our state, to our Texas deer herd, to take CWD seriously.

“That means paying attention to the regulations, that means voluntarily testing animals to build up that base of CWD testing that can help TPWD build confidence in the data. We all have a part to play here and the decisions we make related to CWD have the potential to reach far beyond our fencelines.”

Chronic wasting disease was first found in Texas in a free-ranging mule deer in West Texas. It has since spread to white-tailed deer and elk.