Something just didn't look quite right with that deer...
Posted on 02/05/2012 5:40:35 AM PST by SJackson
A Lancaster County hunter has been treated for rabies after field dressing a deer Jan. 20 in Valley Township, Chester County. The deer later tested positive for rabies.
"The hunter contacted us about his concerns that the deer was unfit for human consumption," said John Veylupek, a wildlife conservation officer for the Pennsylvania Game Commission. "[He] said that he saw the deer standing in a creek, straining and growling. He thought there was a coyote nearby from the sounds the deer was making."
Having cleaned the deer without wearing gloves and with open scratches on his hand, the hunter was advised to seek post-exposure rabies shots.
(Excerpt) Read more at post-gazette.com ...
Cattle have been know for years to contract rabies. An afflicted skunk, racoon, or other would bite the bovine and...there you go. It used to be a much bigger problem than it is today.
You have the right idea but any mammal that is acting strange is suspect.
A deer is big enough to get bitten by a carnivor and get away after being exposed to the virus.
Personally I wouldn’t touch a deer without some sort of protection, they are vermin, rats with good PR. I can think of a half dozen potential diseases they carry and could transmit through broken skin.
Cattle have been know for years to contract rabies.
This happened in Georgia this past week. 900 lb. cow with rabies attacked a farmer.
Any idea as to type of worm the deer was suffering from?
About 5 - 10 years ago a Conservation Agent said that 2/3 of the deer herd in Christian County, Missouri died from a disease know as "blue tongue". He did not say what year these deaths occurred.
My neighbor called the MDC office here in Camden County.
They didn’t seem interested.
If a deer is bitten by a rabid coyote or skunk, it can get rabies.
If you have symptoms, you are dead. If exposure is confirmed,, treatment is required immediately. If you wait till symptoms appear, you cannot be treated.
Something just didn't look quite right with that deer...
My son got the same treatment when he called our local agent about some poachers.
He didn't see them in the act, but he saw the deer, got the license plate number and got a good look at the two people.
It’s been reported that Missouri has a $500 million deficit looming. I wonder if MDC, DNR and a couple more agencies could be combined ?
They don’t appear to be doing any heavy lifting.
The State of Missouri would love to get their hands on the 1/8 cent sales tax that is designated specifically for the Missouri Department of Conservation. MDC is also funded by various fees and licenses, but it gets no money from the state general fund. Any combining of agencies would have to occur among those agencies funded by the state general fund.
The way that tax was designed was picture-perfect. Remember when we had to vote to limit the state gasoline tax to road construction and maintenance only? And how the education lobby screamed bloody murder because we would be taking money away from the children?
Call the new super agency the MDC & EE.
(Missouri Deparment of Conservation & Everything Else.)
Deer that growl = not good
I can outrun a possum, even if he's growling :>)
I was treated after exposure to a bat. The injections are no more painful than a tetanus shot. They are given in the upper part of the arm of your choice. 5 injections spaced out over about a month.
One of the rules when living or enjoying the wilderness, always bring along someone that you can outrun.
They may have required him to tag it. DNR guys can be bigger pains than cops with attitudes......
If the virus is in your body, you have it, simple as that. People no longer die from rabies if it's discovered the animal has it, and treatments aren't what they used to be........
All mammals can contract and spread rabies, but it’s rare in deer due to their diet as you pointed out. I wonder if rather than contracting it from consuming meat if the deer had maybe run across a rabid raccoon? Maybe it was attacked by something big enough to bite the deer, but that the deer could otherwise defend itself against as long as the bite wasn’t in a critical place? Maybe it could have simply been a “nip” by an animal that is usually not bothered by the presence of deer, or something?
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