Wildlife officials issue emergency order following positive CWD tests at deer breeding sites
Editorโs note: We have been told by the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department that CWD is not commonly referred to as โZombie Deer Diseaseโ despite multiple reports from other outlets. We have reached out to the CDC for further information as well and will update this story with further details.
Texas Game Wardens tipped off to illegal whitetail deer kill in Angelina County through social media
ANGELINA COUNTY, Texas โ Texas Game Wardens were tipped off to an illegal killing of a whitetail deer over social media after an Angelina County teenager bragged about the dead buck online, the department said in a statement to KSAT. According to officials, an Angelina County game warden received a report about a large buck killed in southern Angelina County known to frequent a hayfield at night near a county road. pic.twitter.com/z4iI7CMIWh โ Texas Game Warden (@TexasGameWarden) October 24, 2020The department said the game warden patrolled the area and found marks on the ground where the buck was dragged from the hayfield to the road. Another game warden, also an avid bow hunter, was called in for a second opinion to help determine the means by which the deer was killed, officials said. According to Texas' hunting regulations, Angelina County is one of 252 counties in the state with an โarchery-onlyโ season for hunting whitetail deer.
Wildlife officials: Deer tests positive for โzombie deerโ disease, Northwest of SA
AUSTIN โ A five-and-a-half-year-old, white-tailed deer has tested positive for โzombie deerโ disease, or Chronic Wasting Disease, according to Texas Parks and Wildlife officials. Officials say the deer is being held at a deer breeding facility in Kimble County, just Northwest of San Antonio, and is the first positive case of the disease that has been detected since 2011. The disease is described by Texas wildlife officials as a โprogressive, fatal neurological diseaseโ that affects the animalโs brain; however, the deer can have the disease for years without it being detected, per TPW staff. Symptoms of the โzombie deerโ disease include listlessness, lowering of the head, weight loss, repetitive walking in set patterns and a lack of responsiveness, according to officials. 488-pound feral hog killed in Texas by wildlife removal expertsDeer are still being held at the Kimble County breeding facility and more investigations into the disease will be conducted, according to wildlife officials.