AUGUSTA – The Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife is reminding hunters who harvest deer, caribou, elk or moose in another state or province to do their part to prevent the introduction of Chronic Wasting Disease in Maine.

This week, 18 caribou harvested in Canada were transported over the border into Maine as carcasses that had not been fully prepared for transportation into the state in accordance with state law. The caribou reportedly were harvested by nine Maine hunters who intended to prepare the animals in Maine. The Maine Warden Service is investigating the incident.

Chronic Wasting Disease is one of a group of diseases known as Transmissible Spongiform Encephalopathies (TSEs). It is known to occur in mule deer, elk, and white-tailed deer, although other cervids such as red deer, fallow deer, sika deer as well as moose, and caribou may also be susceptible.

CWD is thought to be caused by an infectious protein called a prion that upon entering the body; causes the host’s normal proteins to take on a diseased form. These prions accumulate in the brain and spinal cords, as well as lymph nodes, spleen, eye tissues, bone marrow, saliva, feces and urine in diseased deer.

CWD causes irreversible damage to brain tissues in affected animals and ultimately leads to death.

State laws make it illegal for hunters who hunt and kill a deer, caribou, elk or moose in another state or province to transport any carcass parts that pose a risk of containing CWD prions back into Maine. Hunters may return to Maine only with boned-out meat, hardened antlers (with or without skull caps), hides without the head portion, and finished taxidermy mounts. If still attached, skull caps must be cleaned free of brain and other tissues.

It is legal for individuals to transport cervid carcasses or parts through the state of Maine if they are destined for other states, provinces, and countries. Transportation is to occur without undue delay and must use the most reasonably direct route through Maine to the final destination. Cervid carcasses or parts must be transported in a manner that is both leak-proof and that prevents their exposure to the environment.

The laws are a result of the fact that no state or province can claim to be free of CWD.

If it emerges in Maine, CWD could seriously reduce infected deer populations by lowering adult survival and de-stabilizing populations. Monitoring and control of CWD is extremely costly and would divert already scarce funding and staff resources away from other much-needed programs.

If you plan to hunt deer, caribou, moose or elk in a state/province known or suspected to harbor CWD there are some commonsense precautions you should take to avoid handling, transporting, or consuming potentially CWD-infected specimens.

The precautions include:

· Do not eat the eyes, brain, spinal cord, spleen, tonsils, or lymph nodes of any deer.

· Do not eat any part of a deer that appeared sick.

· If your out-of-state deer is sampled for CWD testing, wait for the test results before eating the meat.

Field dressing:

· Wear rubber or latex gloves while handling the carcass.

· Minimize contact with the brain, spinal cord, spleen, and lymph nodes (lumps of tissue next to organs or in fat and membranes) as you work.

· Use a hunting knife, not knives used at the dinner table.

· Remove all internal organs for proper disposal by burial, or other means that prevents contact by live deer.

· Clean knives and equipment of residue and disinfect in a 50/50 solution of household chlorine bleach and water for 1 hour.

Currently, there is a high demand for CWD testing in states known to harbor CWD. Unfortunately, existing laboratory tests for CWD are expensive, time-consuming, and they can only be performed at a small number of federally approved labs. Although our system in Maine can accommodate enough samples (less than 1,000) from farm-raised and wild deer to scientifically monitor for CWD, we are not able to routinely test hunter-killed deer in Maine at this time.

Are Urine-Based Deer Lures Safe? Until more is known about whether commercial deer lures pose a realistic risk of spreading CWD, we recommend that hunters use caution in spreading urine-based lures in the environment, and avoid placing the lures on their clothing or skin.