Happy Thanksgiving

It is a good time to remember just what it is you are thankful for.

Out with a whimper?

Raising even a portion of your own food requires a new way of looking at the world.

You begin with a lot of ideas bouncing around in your head.  Experience teaches you about reality.

The reality that insecticides and herbicides, properly used, were wonderful revolutions in horticulture.

The reality of how  there really isn't any money to be made.
The realities of how fragile life really can be.

When we first got goats I realized fairly quickly that I needed to supplement with selenium.  We'd raised rabbits with a combination of hay and store bought feed.  We'd raised chickens on a mix of grain and household scraps.

Feeding store bought feeds and human scraps, the selenium wasn't a problem.  Feeding goats on pasture, I learned that even my lush hillside was not self-sufficient, even if I kept the number of herbivore's low.  We needed to import something and that something was selenium.

Thanks to big data, researchers can now take a long look at the prevalence of minerals in the environment over the eons and one look at that data suggests that global selenium deficiency may have contributed to three of the planet's mass extinctions.

But in periods where landmasses are drifting apart – such as 200 million years ago, when the vast supercontinent Pangaea was breaking up – selenium levels can collapse.

Towards the end of the Triassic period, 205 million years ago, selenium levels were around 60 parts per million in ocean sediments. Just three million years later, that figure plummeted to less than two parts per million. Large found similar patterns at the end of the two other unexplained mass extinctions – the Ordovician (more than 440 million years ago) and the Devonian (more than 355 million years ago).

Fear not, mountains are building, there is plenty of global selenium to go around.  If you rave livestock in the red, however, your livestock will benefit if you import more.

Giving it Back

I do not remember when this bow was not a part of the family.

Before I was born Dad received it as a gift from his father, an untamed man in his own right, who passed away this fall.

Dad doesn't have too much opportunity to bow hunt at present so I was using it this year.  Color me sentimental, but I would have very much liked to have killed a deer with this bow.

I didn't loose it.  I gave it back.

As I was taught, I should have unstrung it.  Contemporary opinions differ. Maybe I am glad I left it strung.   If it had to break, I'd rather it break in the garage than when drawn on a target or otherwise held in my hand.

There is nothing that is permanent.  We're all just taking turns.  Today I eat a grouse.  Tomorrow the earth eats me.  Alfalfa eats dirt.  Grouse eats alfalfa.  Man eats grouse.

The bow is wood and wood, too, must return to the earth.

CWD: Monitoring is just the Start

Chronic Wasting Disease  (CWD) should motivate you.

Until we know more prions-related diseases, they should always motivate you.

There is no sterilizing them.  You can not cook them away.  They can lie infectious and in the soil for an unknown amount of time.  They primarily spread through the consumption of animal products but they can be ingested through water tainted by animal waste.

It can take decades before an infection makes itself known. It can only be positively diagnosed through an autopsy.  

Books could be written about what we do not know about prion diseases.  
We don't know exactly how CWD is transmitted between deer.
We don't know the impact it will have on local herds over time.
We do not know how many deer might be infected and infectious yet remain asymptomatic.
We don't know how easily or even if it is transmissible to humans.
If it were transmissible, we have no idea how long it would lie latent before showing itself.

We do know:

• CWD was first identified in captive populations of mule deer and then other Cervidae species (1961).
• Fourteen years passed until it was identified in a wild Cervidae (an elk).
• The disease is spreading to other herds, usually aided by human intervention, usually due to the farming of one species of captive Cervidae or another. 

We do know that if it is transmissible to humans it will be treated as a variant of Creutzfeldt-Jakob Disease (CJD) and that CJD it is a pretty fucking terrible way to die.

The point is, we don't know enough to even have an idea how to respond.  We won't know until we spend some money.  We won't know until we collect some data.  We won't know until we make it easy to collect a statistically significant sample of deer brains from across the state. 

If we are going to confront the problem, we need to know how prevalent the infection is in our deer population.  One identified CWD hotspot is piloting a program consisting of 24/7 refrigerated drop-off points for deer heads, that can then be tested for latent CWD infection.

I applaud this program.  I would like to see it expanded.  I'll pay an extra dollar for my deer tags or shotgun shells.  Better yet, if we can't close them down, maybe we should tax fenced deer hunts and deer farms to help pay for a problem they are at the very least contributing to.

I'm paying attention because CWD is now in my backyard and I don't really have an idea of how to respond.  I am motivated because I know enough about prions to be motivated.  I know I'm willing to give something up to avoid gambling exposing my kids to the disease.

Of course the easiest thing to give up would be the farming of wild Cervides.  I guess the libertarian in me should be glad that the burden of proof seems to be with the government before shutting down private enterprise.  Given the spread of the disease, however, it is starting to look self-evident to me that the commonweal is being harmed by the practice.

Despite evidence to the contrary of course deer farms will claim they're being discriminated against.  I think they're just a bunch of whining little piss ants who know they need to be shut down for the public good but lack the courage to do it themselves.

We all make mistakes guys.  Own it.  Fix it. Make it right.

Already out of date

Imagine if we discover in a decade's time that the disease is just barely transmissible to human beings.

Even if the risk remains statistically insignificant, even if your at more risk of falling out of a tree stand to your death, imagine the response the morning after 60 Minutes does an exspose on the risk of getting CJD from venison.

Imagine the response if, like those at risk of having been exposed to Mad Cow (the bovine form of prion disease), the Red Cross asks those who've eaten venison to refrain from donating blood.

The impact on our sport would be horrendous.
The impact on the deer hunting economy would be catastrophic.
The result might even overflow to other hunting sports.  The mob has no sense of proportion.

I am not calling for fear; I am calling for prudence.  I am calling for deer hunters to lead the charge to protect the deer herd, the health of which they depend upon.

We should be motivated by the spread of CWD to protect the deer herd which is just another way of protecting deer hunting.

As it stands, I am rethinking how I am going to butcher/use my deer meat.  At the least, I will stop making any incisions that cross the spinal column.  Despite being told how tasty it is, I've never eaten deer brain.  I won't start.

If circumstances change, however, I might become even more conservative.  If I break the back of the deer, exposing much of the remainder of the meat to the spinal column, should I eat it or should I turn that tasty carcass into dog food?   

I love my venison, but risking my brain and the brains of my children is not a gamble I am willing to take, at least until some of today's "not known's" are turned into "now we know."

Year Event 1967 CWD was first identified as a clinical disease in captive mule deer at the Colorado Division of Wildlife Foothills Wildlife Research Facility in Fort Collins, Colorado. 1978 CWD was officially classified as a Transmissible Spongiform Encephalopathy (TSE). TSE's include scrapie in sheep and goats, Mad Cow disease in cattle, and Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease in humans. 1979 CWD was first recognized in captive mule deer and black-tailed deer at the Wyoming Fish and Game Department's Sybille wildlife research facility. CWD was diagnosed in captive elk for the first time. 1981 The Colorado Division of Wildlife identified CWD in a wild elk, marking the first documented case of CWD in a wild cervid. 1985 The Colorado Division of Wildlife confirmed the presence of CWD in a wild mule deer for the first time. The Colorado Division of Wildlife attempted to eliminate CWD from the Fort Collins Foothills Wildlife Research Facility by treating the soil with chlorine, removing the treated soil, and applying an additional chlorine treatment before letting the facility remain vacant for more than a year. The effort was unsuccessful. The Wyoming Fish and Game Department identified CWD in a wild mule deer, marking the state's first case of CWD in a wild cervid. 1996 CWD was found for the first time outside of the Colorado/Wyoming CWD "endemic zone" in a captive elk farm in Saskatchewan. 1997 CWD is identified on several captive elk facilities in South Dakota, marking the first documented cases of CWD in the state. 1998 June 1998 and again in June 1999, elk shipped to Oklahoma from an alternative livestock facility near Philipsburg were confirmed to have CWD. 1999 The Nebraska Game and Parks Commission discovered CWD in a wild mule deer, the state's first documented case of the disease. CWD is detected in a captive elk facility in Oklahoma, marking the first time the disease was found in the state. In November and December 1999, all 83 elk at the Philipsburg facility in Montana (the source of the CWD captive positive in Oklahoma) were destroyed. 2000 CWD was found in a Saskatchewan mule deer, marking the first time the disease was found in the province's wild cervids. 2001 South Dakota discovered CWD in wild white-tailed deer for the first time. Nebraska discovered CWD in a captive white-tailed deer facility for the first time 2002 The Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources detected CWD in wild white-tailed deer, the state's first documented case of CWD. The New Mexico Department of Game and Fish discovered CWD in a mule deer near White Sands Missile Range. This is the first case of CWD in the state of New Mexico. The Minnesota Board of Animal Health confirmed the presence of CWDin a captive elk, the state's first documented case of the disease. The 1st International CWD Symposium was held in Denver, Colorado. The Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources detected CWD in a captive white-tailed deer, the state's first documented case of CWD in captive cervids. Saskatchewan detected CWD in a mule deer outside of the province's previously delineated CWD containment area. The Illinois Department of Natural Resources discovered CWD in a wild white-tailed deer, the state's first documented case of CWD. The South Dakota Department of Game, Fish and Parks discovered CWD in wild elk from the Wind Cave National Park. This documented the first case of CWD found in the state's wild elk populations. The first case of CWD in Alberta was found at a white-tailed deer farm near Edmonton. Wyoming confirmed the first case of CWD in a mule deer west of the Continental Divide. 2003 The Utah Division of Wildlife Resources detected CWD in a wild mule deer, marking the state's first case of CWD. A dot blot ELISA test for CWD, developed by VMRD, Inc., was licensed for CWD testing. United States Department of Agriculture licensed a CWD dot plot (ELISA) test developed by VMRD, Inc. The test analyzes retropharyngeal lymph node samples and has a turnaround time of approximately 24 hours. U.S. Senator Wayne Allard (R-CO) introduced a comprehensive bi-partisan bill targeted at coordinating and increasing federal response to CWD management. Rep. Ron Kind (D-WI) introduced two bills created to assist states in combating the spread of CWD; the National Chronic Wasting Disease Task Force Establishment Act and the Chronic Wasting Disease Research, Monitoring, and Education Enhancement Act. The United States Department of Agriculture approved a second-generation CWD test developed by Bio-Rad Laboratories, Inc. Congress approved a bill that includes $4.2 million to expand research on CWD in wild deer and elk populations. 2004 Agriculture Secretary Ann M. Veneman and Health and Human Services Secretary Tommy Thompson announced creation of a federal interagency working group to identify gaps in scientific knowledge about abnormal prion proteins and promote coordination of prion research projects by federal agencies. CWD was set as a national priority for piloting a Wildlife Disease Action Plan by the Canadian Councils of Resource Ministers. The Wyoming Game and Fish Department discovered the presence of CWD for the first time on the east slope of the Snowy Range Mountains in the north-central part of the state. The Nebraska Game and Parks Commission confirmed a case of CWDin a white-tailed deer near the town of Grand Island. This is approximately 250 miles east of the Panhandle where all previous cases of CWD had been documented. 2005 The Colorado Division of Wildlife identified a case of CWD in a mule deer south of Colorado Springs. This is the farthest south on the Front Range that CWD has been detected. The New York State Department of Agriculture and Markets confirmed the presence of CWD in a captive white-tailed deer, marking the state's first documented case of CWD. The New York State Department of Environmental Conservationdiscovered CWD in a wild white-tailed deer from Oneida County. This documented the first case of CWD found in the state's wild deer populations. The 2nd International CWD Symposium was held in Madison, Wisconsin. The first documented case of CWD in West Virginia is identified in a wild white-tailed deer. The Colorado Division of Wildlife confirmed the first documented case of CWD in a wild moose. Alberta discovered a case of CWD in a wild mule deer, marking the first time CWD was found in the province's wild cervids. The New Mexico Department of Fish and Game discovered CWD in two wild elk from the Sacramento Mountains, documenting the first cases of CWD found in the state's wild elk populations. 2006 Kansas Department of Wildlife and Parks discovered CWD in a white-tailed deer from Cheyenne County. This is the first time CWD was found in the state. Researchers at the University of Kentucky found that CWD prions are present in the leg muscles of infected deer. The Minnesota Board of Animal Health confirmed that a captive white-tailed deer from Lac Qui Parle County tested positive for CWD. This is the state's first case of CWD in captive white-tailed deer. University of Wisconsin-Madison researchers discovered that infectious prions adhere to specific soil minerals where they remain infective. The New Mexico Game and Fish Department identified CWD in a mule deer on the Stallion site of White Sands Missile Range, 75 miles further north of the state's northernmost infection area. Colorado State University researchers found that infectious prions are capable of transmitting CWD through saliva and blood. The Colorado Division of Wildlife reported finding two additional moose with CWD in the northern part of the state. 2007 The first white-tailed deer to test positive for CWD in Alberta was identified by the Canadian Food Inspection Agency. The Utah Division of Wildlife Resources published an e-book addressing various modeling approaches to describe the spatial epidemiology of CWD. Research from the University of Wisconsin-Madison revealed that theinfectivity of prions significantly increases when they are bound to certain soil minerals. 2008 The first cases of CWD in Saskatchewan's wild elk population are found in the province's east-central region. Researchers from the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service and Colorado State University developed anew pre-mortem CWD test for elk. The Michigan Department of Natural Resources detected CWD in a captive white-tailed deer from Kent County. This is state's first documented case of CWD. The Wyoming Game and Fish Department discovered CWD in a wild moose. This is the first time a moose infected with CWD is found outside of Colorado. Elk meat sold at a Longmont, Colorado farmers market was found to come from a captive elk infected with CWD. 2009 Researchers found that prions are shed in the feces of early-stage CWD-infected deer. Colorado State University researchers were granted $2.5 million from the National Science Foundation to study transmission of CWD. 2010 The first documented case of CWD in Virginia is identified in a wild white-tailed deer. The Missouri Department of Agriculture discovers the state's first case of CWD in a captive white-tailed deer. The first documented case of CWD in North Dakota is identified in a wild mule deer. 2011 Minnesota's first documented case of CWD in a wild cervid is identified in a white-tailed deer. The first documented case of CWD in Maryland is identified in a wild white-tailed deer. 2012 The first cases of CWD in Missouri's free-ranging cervids are found in two white-tailed deer. CWD detected in far west Texas CWD Found in Deer at Iowa Hunting Preserve. First case of CWD found in captive Pennsylvania deer. 2013 First documented cases of CWD found in Blair and Bedford counties in Pennsylvania wild white-tailed deer. 2014 Chronic wasting disease detected for first time in wild Iowa deer. First case of chronic wasting disease confirmed in Ohio on private preserve. 2015 Michigan confirms state's first case of chronic wasting disease in free-ranging white-tailed deer.
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