Baiting and feeding bans initiated due to CWD-positive deer farm in Marinette County

The Department of Natural Resources on Tuesday announced baiting and feeding bans were in effect for Marinette, Florence and Forest counties.

The prohibitions are due to the finding of chronic wasting disease at Wild Rivers Whitetails, a deer breeding farm in Goodman.

A 2-year-old doe that died at the facility was tested and found to be CWD-positive.

It is the first documented case of CWD in Marinette County.

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As a result of the finding, the DNR enacted the baiting and feeding bans as required by state law.

The prohibitions are designed to prevent unnatural congregations of deer and reduce the potential for disease transmission.

Feeding birds and small mammals is allowed under the rules, provided the feeding devices are within 50 yards of a human dwelling and at a sufficient height or design to prevent access by deer. 

The newly-enacted ban covers Marinette County, site of the CWD-positive deer farm, as well as Florence County, as its border is within a 10-mile radius of the disease finding.

In addition, the finding renews a baiting and feeding ban in Forest County (also within 10 miles), according to DNR officials.

Chronic wasting disease is a transmissible disease caused by abnormal prion, or protein. It is fatal to all members of the deer family. 

The disease-causing prion is found in many tissues and fluids of infected animals, including saliva, brain, lymph and muscle.

The disease has not been shown to cause illness in humans, but health experts recommend humans not consume meat from a CWD-positive animal.

First identified in Colorado in 1967. CWD has since spread to at least 24 states; it was first documented in Wisconsin in 2002.

The disease has been linked to herd-level population declines of deer and elk in Wyoming and Colorado.

Although much is still being learned about its spread, movement of live CWD-positive animals or of carcasses containing the infectious prions are considered the leading means for long-distance distribution of the disease.

The Marinette County case joins CWD-positive findings in captive animals at facilities in Manitowoc, Marathon, Oconto and Shawano counties as the only evidence of the disease in those counties. 

Wild Rivers Whitetails has about 320 deer in a 230-acre single-fenced facility, according to the Department of Agriculture, Trade and Consumer Protection.

It also maintains a nearby fenced area as a shooting preserve. 

The farm has not been enrolled in the state's CWD Herd Status Program since May 2017. It participated in the program from 2002-'17.

Animal health officials are investigating the diseased deer's history and tracing movements of animals onto and off the Marinette County farm in an attempt to determine whether other herds may have been exposed to the CWD-positive deer. 

When reached Friday, acting state veterinarian Darlene Konkle said the investigation was still in progress.

As of this month, baiting and feeding of deer is prohibited in 43 Wisconsin counties, according to the DNR.

The agency has additional information on its website (dnr.wi.gov) regarding baiting and feeding regulations and CWD in Wisconsin, including procedures to have a deer tested for the disease.

If a sick deer is observed at any time, the agency encourages the public to report it by contacting a local DNR wildlife biologist.