EHD finds.

[MrHank]

While looking for the doe I shot last night I found 2 more deer dead from blue tounge a doe, and a 6 point, then this morning I went looking on our farm and found a decent 8 point propably around 17'' wide. I also heard of a guy that found a 10 point with a 18 1/2'' spread just down the road. All these deer were found either in a creek or next to it. Its really a shame but I guess its natures way of keeping things in balance.

[Backwoods Boy]

Same problem here! Found a six and three does last week. I'm in Northern Henry where are you?

[mrdux]

I got a taxidermy call to do a European mount on a big 10 pointer found dead in Marshall Co. this week. The guy had it several times on his game cam. Very symmetrical and around 18-20 inches wide. Probably a high 130s. What a shame!!

[Hammer]

My cousin's husband works for LG@E, and he said the smell is so bad where he works from all the dead deer piling up near the river it is hardly bearable.

[Duster]

We found a small 6 point a few days ago. I made a call to our CO and reported it, he had me on the lookout for any sick deer in my area. They wanted lung samples from any sick ones that had to be put down. From what he told me they are keeping track of the locations these dead deer are found in so maybe a call to your CO will be of help. It wouldn't shock me to see some zone changes if the numbers are extra high.

[massive horns]

riding 4 wheelers this afternoon, I found 2 does near a creek....

[AteUp]

It wouldn't shock me to see some zone changes if the numbers are extra high.

Yep, and areas that have been hit hard should have lower than normal numbers after gun season. While no one wants disease in the herd, deer are very good at reproducing and while it may hurt some areas short term, it should help keep some numbers in check in other places. With the drought we have had and winter around the corner, there could have been a bad situation looming for starvation. Still could happen depending on the winter. It would prolly be a good idea to check all water sources on your hunting land and talk with landowners nearby to get a total number of dead deer in your area. If a ton of does have died, you may want to back down on your doe harvest.

[Joe Bryan]

I found one tonight, from the looks of the remains she had been dead for several days. Coyotes pretty much stripped her clean. I found her in a dried up creekbed.:mad:

[notimlmit]

Hadn't thought about what Duster said but that could hold true about re-zoning if areas get hit hard. Nature is cruel but effective but it's still sad

[huntindawoods]

Sure would hate to see them redo the zones but for the safety of the deer herd I'm all for it

[wademup]

It is so strange how things work,I am hunting a 465 acre tract and seeing 50 per day in the beans but we have only found 1 dead so far,there are 5 or six of us hunting and we are completely bordered by a large creek and have a 5 acre lake,with the amount of deer on us right now and the amount of water I reckon we have been very fortunate.

Wademup

[AteUp]

The midge population stays high because of low rainfall and high populations of midges thrive in stagnant water. I'm guessing rain will drown the small midges and moving water decreases their production. Low rainfall congregates the deer into smaller areas to water. The reason you haven't seen many dead ones may be because you have more area for the deer to water and less that are concentrated around stagnant water?? I dunno, just speculating.

[Jarhead]

I've only got about 150 yds of a small branch, or whats usually a branch, on the farm I hunt. I found a 6 pt. dead in it last week. A friend waded one of the creeks last Sat. and found 6 dead in the water and smelled something over the bank that he didn't investigate. The coon hunters are finding several around here also. We have too many deer here in Allen co. but this is a sad way for them to be thinned out.

[littlebear]

Found a doe sat. afternoon . looks like she had been dead about a week . That is the 2nd one we've found.

[MrHank]

BackwoodsBoy I live in Port Royal and have 2 farms I hunt here and 2 more that I hunt over around Bethelaham. All the deer I have found so far have been around Port Royal, but my other 2 farms I hunt I have not even set foot on yet this year. I think I am going to check them out this weekend.

[MrHank]

Called fish and wildlife to report the deer that I have found , they took my name and number and what county they were in. They said they would like for people to report what deer they find to them so they can keep track as best they can of the numbers. They also said if you come up on one that is still alive to call the poacher hotline to report it so they can dispatch a officer out to take blood samples of the deer while it is still alive. Just thought I would pass this info along.

[fireduck]

I shot a doe last night that was sick from something. Called CO and a biologist and they said do not eat it. My duaghter shot this deer thursday and she came in limbing last night. Mature doe wieght maybe 60 lbs smelled terriable had long slougthy hoofs and was a bag of bones. She did not raise a fawn this year. Here is a pic. I would not of shot here if she would not been limping.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h206/fireduck08/DSC_0066.jpg

[naturalelite]

Yep, and areas that have been hit hard should have lower than normal numbers after gun season. While no one wants disease in the herd, deer are very good at reproducing and while it may hurt some areas short term, it should help keep some numbers in check in other places. With the drought we have had and winter around the corner, there could have been a bad situation looming for starvation. Still could happen depending on the winter. It would prolly be a good idea to check all water sources on your hunting land and talk with landowners nearby to get a total number of dead deer in your area. If a ton of does have died, you may want to back down on your doe harvest.

Very good points here. We have found 5 on 250 acres in Adair county

[notimlmit]

Fireduck I would definetly toss that one out, it looks pretty bad just from what I can see. Did you ask about getting another tag, sometimes in cases like that you can get issued another tag

[fireduck]

Fireduck I would definetly toss that one out, it looks pretty bad just from what I can see. Did you ask about getting another tag, sometimes in cases like that you can get issued another tag
They told me she had to be tagged and checked in. They never offered to replace the tag. With 2 kids that eat the meat I was not taking a chance even though they say it's not transmitable to humans.

[Pooge]

Yea, thats pretty gnarly looking. I would not eat it unless I was starving. Nice of you to put it down but it stinks that you lost a tag over it.

[mcdenney]

Does anybody know where you can find out what counties have been confirmed with at least one case? I know there was a map on here earlier but I was wanting something more updated. Thanks.

[AteUp]

http://fw.ky.gov/gifs/ehdcounties.gif

http://fw.ky.gov/newsrelease.asp?nid=204&NavPath=C105C122C581C644

Frankfort, Ky. – Kentucky’s first frost in the coming weeks should put an end to the state’s outbreak of Epizootic Hemorrhagic Disease (EHD) in deer. Biting midges or gnats, which transmit the virus that causes the disease, die off with the first hard freeze. Kentucky’s first frost of the season typically occurs from late September to mid-October.

Biologists with the Kentucky Department of Fish and Wildlife Resources report this year’s outbreak of hemorrhagic disease is the worst in at least 30 years. Similar outbreaks have been reported this year in Tennessee, Indiana, West Virginia, Virginia and southwest Pennsylvania.

“Hemorrhagic disease is caused by a virus. We see large outbreaks about every five to seven years in Kentucky,” said Danny Watson, a wildlife biologist with the Kentucky Department of Fish and Wildlife Resources.

In Kentucky, the disease is responsible for the deaths of white-tailed deer in at least 76 Kentucky counties this year.

The most significant outbreak appears to be in Western Kentucky, where all 25 counties of the Green River Wildlife Region and most counties in the Purchase Region have received reports from landowners accounting for over 700 dead deer. The virus is also on the increase in Central Kentucky, where 20 counties have been confirmed to have dead deer. People usually find the dead or weak and emaciated deer near water.

“This year’s statewide drought could be playing a role in the outbreak, said Karen Alexy, wildlife division director for Kentucky Fish and Wildlife. “Dry conditions are concentrating deer near water sources, increasing the chances of midges biting infected animals then transmitting the disease to healthy deer nearby." The virus cannot be spread from a deer carcass.

With opening of archery season, hunters are concerned about the safety of eating deer that may be infected with hemorrhagic disease. Hemorrhagic disease is not infectious to humans. Eating the meat of deer that appear to be healthy poses no risk to humans even if the deer is infected with EHD.

However, hunters should not consume animals that appear emaciated or weak prior to harvest, due to the risk of secondary infections. EHD can cause large abscesses to form in the body cavity, muscle tissue or under the skin. These abscesses render the meat inedible.

Hemorrhagic disease usually occurs in late summer and early fall because of the increased presence of these gnats. Although deer affected with the acute form of hemorrhagic disease are most often seen in late summer, deer with chronic cases can be found in winter. Hunters should be aware that they may see weak or emaciated deer during the hunting season after these widespread outbreaks and should not harvest deer that do not appear healthy.

Hemorrhagic disease occurs annually in the southeastern United States, but its distribution and severity of occurrence widely varies. Less than 25 percent of the deer in a population usually die from the disease, but death rates can be higher in certain cases.

Signs of the disease depend on the strength of the virus and length of infection in the animal. Hemorrhagic disease causes fever, labored breathing and swelling of the head, neck, tongue and eyelids. Infected deer may die within 72 hours, or may slowly deteriorate for months from lameness and starvation. Early in the cycle of the disease, animals may show little or no sign of infection. Infected deer that survive for a longer period of time experience lameness, loss of appetite and greatly reduced activity.

According to veterinary staff of the Southeastern Cooperative Wildlife Disease Study at the University of Georgia, the incidence of hemorrhagic disease agents in livestock is more difficult to assess. Most hemorrhagic virus infections in cattle are from the related bluetongue virus, and livestock typically do not show symptoms. However, a small percentage of animals can develop lameness, sore mouths and reproductive problems. Cattle can be short-term bluetongue virus carriers. Less is known about the EHD virus in cattle. EHD virus has been isolated from sick cattle, and surveys have shown that cattle often have antibodies to this virus, indicating frequent exposure. For domestic sheep, the situation is more straightforward. Sheep are generally unaffected by EHD but bluetongue can be a serious disease with similar effects as in deer.

Past observations have revealed that simultaneous infections sometimes occur in deer, cattle and sheep. Discovery of illness in deer indicates that infected biting gnats are present in the vicinity, and thus, both deer and livestock are at risk of infection. Once virus activity begins, both livestock and deer potentially serve to fuel an outbreak; however, the spread of disease from deer to livestock, or vice versa, has not been proven. Furthermore, deer have not been documented as long-term carriers for EHD or bluetongue viruses.

Farmers who discover deer carcasses near ponds or livestock watering sources should remove them from the immediate area. Since hemorrhagic disease cannot be transmitted from a dead animal, it is not necessary to bury a carcass. The carcass can provide food for scavengers.

[struttin&ruttin]

We didn't find the deer but sure could smell one yesterday. It is a high grass field surrounded by thick woods. Somewhere out there is a dead one. WoW

[mcdenney]

Thanks Ateup. I wonder if the state is planning to adjust any of the zones, etc. as it seems pretty bad. Take into consideration a poor acorn crop, drought conditions which have effected all our food plots as well as normal agricultural food and this could have significant impact on our deer herd for years to come. The only thing though is how will "we" as hunters or the state figure out what the right decision is when considering harvesting an animal. You certainly don't want to take out too many or not enough does. Just some food for thought.

[dupont241]

[quote=AteUp;463360]http://fw.ky.gov/gifs/ehdcounties.gif

http://fw.ky.gov/newsrelease.asp?nid=204&NavPath=C105C122C581C644

This map can't be up to date, I know of 25+ cases of deer being found in or near watering holes or found in Green River in Edmonson County and it's not even listed. I called one in myself..

[fireduck]

Farmer about 2 miles from me has lost 2 cows and doctoring a 3rd to blue tounge. Biologist told me not to worry about that deer hanging in our barn. I'm going to have a stroke if my duaghters show cattle get sick.