If my memory serves me, I think those elk cases were on an elk preserve, where they were feeding them animal by-product. There is a study on that somewhere, with a few theories, like grazing. Because they are sheep like, they think the transferance could have been a sheep variant, and it turned into another variant simular but not quite the same as the BSE from cattle. As you probably know, this is a huge problem with sheep ranchers with this as well. I should look it up and see if those studies have come to any conclusions. I haven't kept up with them for the last year or so.
T.B. in that area is a problem as well, and in some areas of the northern mid west.
There hasn't been any reported finds this year that I've heard of so far, but it's early yet. Hunters should be carefull though. Any sickly looking animals should be turned in.
You are correct in part however I am thinking world wide where there are large outbreaks that can not be traced to animal by product feeding. This is happening all over the place not just here. The animal by-product feeding maybe be just a condensed form of what caused the problem originally. It is a sort of in your face explanation but it does not explain the whole. I can't get past the impression that there is something else, something we are missing, that is the real cause. The first and most obvious answer is to stop hazardous feeding practices. We must also look at the growth of naturally occuring CJD type diseases. I really think the two are linked.