Saw an article in a Grensboro, NC paper 2 or 3 weeks ago about the problem with deer dying. Forget the exact disease -- spread by a gnat I think. Supposedly worse die-off due to drought. Problem should stop with freezing weather.
Spoke to my dad in WV. One neighbor found 11 dead deer on his property. Dad has found several and actually had a couple of cows die as well -- disease affects other animals besides deer.
He had heard that the problem was worse in Pennsylvania than in West Virginia. My brother in Ohio said deer were dying there also.
Bea Seibert
Posted by david1097 (Member # 3662) on :
I seem to recall that there were reports of a hermoragic virus affecting deer in several states. This is something like ebola virus in humans but only affects cervids.
Posted by GardenLymer (Member # 6008) on :
Yes, here in middle Tenn - 80 dead in a nearby county about a month ago or so...haven't found any on my acreage. Can't say my hearts bleeding over it - I somehow feel differently toward Bambi & his Mom since Lyme & co's...but I'm sure the ticks will somehow prevail.
Posted by ByronSBell 2007 (Member # 11496) on :
My dad owns around 1,500acres of land in Mid. tennesse and it is a virus that had gone around that caused internal bleeding and would make the deer really thirsty. All the deer were found dead by bodies of water, several on our land. I think it has kinda died down for now...
Posted by Tincup (Member # 5829) on :
Yes, blue tongue it is. We have had a big problem with it here too this year. About 80 deer on one farm were found dead recently. Hunters are noticing the problems are worse than they have been in a long time.
Gnats get up in the nose of the deer during dry weather and lay eggs which hatch and the "bugs" get into the deer's brains. It also causes hemoraging.. hence the swollen blue tongues... and often bloody noses. The deer dies shortly after being infected.
I sent a "tip" about this situation to the local paper and they did an article on it. Funny how the "officials" they interviewed didn't know much about it but repeatedly insisted it won't harm humans.
Sound familiar?
Posted by PinchotGail (Member # 5066) on :
Bea, Wow that is interesting. I just spoke on Friday night to a group of hunters near State College PA along with a deer biologist and a biolgist involved with the elk. Neither one mentioned this problem.....nobody in the audience did either.
I live on a farm in south central PA, north of York and our deer are getting hit by cars, but not keeling over that I've seen or heard about.......I'll keep my ears open. We just had a freeze though last night, so that may take care of it.
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