IDFG -- Special CWD Tags Available Dec. 7

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F&G to offer tags starting Dec. 7 for 35 CWD surveillance hunts with 1,527 tags available​

By Roger Phillips, Public Information Supervisor
Wednesday, December 1, 2021 - 3:11 PM MST
Hunters must abide by strict requirements to participate in these hunts.

Idaho Fish and Game will offer 1,527 deer tags for Chronic Wasting Disease surveillance hunts with the discounted tags sold on a first-come, first-served basis starting at 10 a.m. MST on Dec. 7 at Fish and Game regional offices only. These specialized hunts are intended to gather 775 CWD samples with strict requirements for those hunters who participate. These hunts are limited to Idaho residents only.

During October, two mule deer bucks taken by hunters near Slate Creek north of Riggins tested positive for CWD, and Fish and Game officials need to know if there are other animals infected with the disease in the area.

Tags will be divided between public and private lands and are exclusive to either of those. A large portion of the deer herds in the area are likely to be located on private lands during the hunts.

“We appreciate hunters’ willingness to help us get these important CWD samples. Hunters who want to participate will have to do some things that may be inconvenient, but they are critical to help us to get a better understanding of the extent of CWD in the area,” said Scott Reinecker, Deputy Director of Idaho Fish and Game.

All harvested deer taken during the CWD surveillance hunts must be tested for CWD with no exceptions. Fish and Game will take samples from deer heads at Lewiston and McCall regional offices and at designated check stations near the hunt locations.

There will be 35 separate hunt areas, and each surveillance hunt will have a targeted number of CWD samples. All hunts are scheduled to end on Dec. 19, but could close earlier, or be extended, based on the number of samples collected. Details about each hunt are available at idfg.idaho.gov/cwd/hunt.

CWD surveillance hunt tags will cost $10 each and are limited to one per hunter on public lands. These hunts will start on Dec. 7, and if the targeted number of samples is reached before the end of a hunt, hunters will receive notification (email or phone call if email is not available) that the hunt will close within 48 hours.

Hunters are allowed to keep the meat and antlers (for buck tags) of the deer they harvest.

Hunters participating in CWD surveillance hunts are required to:
  • Only harvest the deer that you have a valid tag for; i.e. mule deer or white-tailed deer, antlerless only or antlered only, and only in the hunt area in which your tag is valid.
  • Harvest only an adult deer; no fawns may be harvested.
  • Hunters are required to quarter or debone a harvested animal at the kill site.
  • Present the head of any harvested deer to a check station or regional office within 24 hours. Fish and Game will contact any hunter whose animal tests positive for CWD.
  • Hunt only on public land and not hunt on private property if you have a tag for public land, and vice versa for private property hunts.
  • Understand that the hunt may close before the closing date listed on the tag, and no rain checks or refunds will be given for tags that are not filled.
  • Record the GPS location where you harvest a deer. (A smartphone will work for this.)
  • Properly handle the carcass of a harvested animals in accordance with Fish and Game directions, which will be provided when a tag is issued.
CWD is a fatal disease caused by a prion, which is a type of infectious protein that affects the nervous system of deer, elk, reindeer and moose. The prion protein is primarily in certain tissues in the animal, including eye, brain, spinal cord and lymph nodes. Animals may not appear ill or show any symptoms early in the infection.

Although new to Idaho, CWD is found in 27 U.S. states and four Canadian provinces. CWD was detected in Wyoming in the mid 1980s and first detected in Montana in 2017. Learn more about CWD in Idaho at idfg.idaho.gov/cwd.

According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, there have been no reports of CWD infection in people. However, in the interest of safety, public health officials encourage hunters to follow these precautions and recommendations.
 
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halfway considering buying one of these but then i think about the chit show the hunt will probably look like and not sure i want to be a part of it. maybe ill just buy one any way and not hunt to help save a deer
 
halfway considering buying one of these but then i think about the chit show the hunt will probably look like and not sure i want to be a part of it. maybe ill just buy one any way and not hunt to help save a deer
You're going to have to survive the chit show tag sale first! That has disaster written all over it.
 
Smart move idaho quarter or debonair animals at kill spot?????

So then you leave the spinel cord there to contaminate the area???

CWD is in the brain, spinel cord or spinel fluid???

I hope that is a mis print!!
 

What hunters need to know before buying a tag for CWD surveillance hunts on Dec. 7-8​

By Roger Phillips, Public Information Supervisor
Monday, December 6, 2021 - 10:31 AM MST
Tags for CWD surveillance hunts go on sale Dec. 7 for public land hunts and Dec. 8 for private land hunts
Idaho Fish and Game will offer 1,527 deer tags for Chronic Wasting Disease surveillance hunts, which are specialized deer hunts designed for Fish and Game officials to gather 775 samples for CWD testing. There are requirements for hunters who participate in these hunts, which are limited to Idaho residents, except nonresidents who possess an Idaho lifetime hunting license.

Hunters need to understand the process in which the CWD surveillance tags will be distributed:
  • CWD surveillance hunt tags will be sold only at Fish and Game regional offices, and at the MK Nature Center at 600 S. Walnut St. in Boise. Tags are $10 each, and no refunds or rainchecks will be given.
  • All hunters must buy in-person and cannot purchase tags for another person. The only exception is that a tag can be purchased by a parent on behalf of their minor child.
  • Hunters who have otherwise held deer tags, including extra deer tags, are eligible to purchase tags for the CWD surveillance hunts.
  • CWD surveillance hunts may close before the closing date listed on the tag, or could be extended, depending on how many CWD samples are collected. People can track how many samples have been taken in each hunt at on the CWD surveillance hunts webpage.
  • Hunters who buy a tag will receive an information packet, and they must read and understand all the requirements for the hunts, some of which are included below.

Public-land-only hunts​

Public-land-only hunt tags will be sold on a first-come, first-served basis starting on Tuesday, Dec. 7 starting at 10 a.m. MST. People can see what tags are available on the CWD surveillance hunts webpage.

Each public-land-only tag is only valid for one species and one gender, i.e. mule deer or white-tailed deer, antlerless only or antlered only, and only on public land in the hunt area in which the tag is valid. Hunters are only allowed to harvest adult deer, no fawns.

Private-land-only hunts​

Private-land-only hunt tags will be sold starting Wednesday, Dec. 8 starting at 10 a.m. MST. People can see what tags are available on the CWD surveillance hunts webpage.

Anyone buying these tags must be a qualified landowner who meets the acreage requirement, or a qualified landowner can notify a Fish and Game regional office and designate a hunter, or hunters, who have permission to hunt on their land. Landowners who are interested in participating, or designating tags can call (208) 799-5010.

Each private-land-only tag is only valid for one species and one gender, i.e. mule deer or white-tailed deer, antlerless only or antlered only, and only on private land, for which permission has been granted, in the hunt area in which your tag is valid. Hunters are only allowed to harvest adult deer, no fawns.

CWD surveillance hunt requirements​

All hunters participating in the CWD surveillance hunts must abide by the following requirements:
  • All harvested deer taken during the CWD surveillance hunts must be tested for CWD with no exceptions. Fish and Game will take samples from deer heads at Lewiston and McCall regional offices, and other Fish and Game regional offices, and at designated check stations near the hunt locations.
  • Hunters must present the head of any harvested deer at a check station or regional office within 24 hours. Fish and Game will contact any hunter whose animal tests positive for CWD.
  • Hunters must quarter or debone a harvested deer at the kill site and leave everything there except the head and edible meat, which includes the meat from hindquarters as far down as the hock, meat of the front quarters as far down as the knee and meat along the backbone which is the loin and tenderloin.
  • Hunters must record the GPS location where a deer is harvested. (A smartphone will work for this.)
  • To learn more go to the CWD surveillance hunt requirements webpage.

Why is Fish and Game holding these hunts?​

Fish and Game set the CWD surveillance hunts to determine if more deer are infected with the disease, and if the disease is present beyond the immediate area of the initial CWD detections in two mule deer bucks in the Slate Creek area north of Riggins in October.

“I appreciate that hunters are willing to help us gather CWD test samples through these hunts. We understand there will be some inconveniences, but it would be difficult get these important CWD samples without their participation,” Fish and Game Director Ed Schriever said.
He also stressed the surveillance hunts are strictly to gather information and do not reflect a new strategy for long-term CWD management.

“While harvesting deer to get test samples removes more deer than what would have occurred during our regularly scheduled hunts, the intent is not to reduce deer densities in response to CWD, it’s to understand what we’re dealing with,” Schriever said.

Although new to Idaho, CWD is found in 27 U.S. states and four Canadian provinces. CWD was detected in Wyoming in the mid 1980s and first detected in Montana in 2017. Learn more about CWD in Idaho at idfg.idaho.gov/cwd.
 

CWD surveillance hunts are to gather more information about the disease, not manage it in the long term​

By Roger Phillips, Public Information Supervisor
Thursday, December 2, 2021 - 2:48 PM MST
As Fish and Game gathers more information, the public will be involved in shaping a long-term CWD management strategy

Idaho Fish and Game recently announced a series of Chronic Wasting Disease surveillance hunts in response to the detection of two mule deer bucks in the Slate Creek area north of Riggins that tested positive for CWD in October. These were the first positive cases of CWD in Idaho since testing started in 1997.

Fish and Game set the CWD surveillance hunts to gather more information and determine if more deer are infected, and if the disease is located beyond the immediate area of the initial detections. The surveillance hunts are not the start of a long-term management response to CWD.

“I understand and appreciate the concerns Idaho’s hunters and residents have about the detection of CWD for the first time in Idaho,” Fish and Game Director Ed Schriever said. “I want to assure you that these hunts were set strictly to get more samples for CWD testing.

While harvesting deer to get CWD samples removes more deer than what would have occurred during our regularly scheduled general and controlled hunts, the intent is not to reduce deer densities in response to CWD, it’s strictly to understand what we’re dealing with.”

CWD is a neurological disease that affects deer, elk, moose and caribou. There is no practical live test for the disease, so the only way to determine how many animals may have it is to take samples from dead animals. CWD surveillance hunts are focused on deer, which are the most susceptible to CWD, and hunts are being held in the immediate area and surrounding areas where the CWD-positive bucks were taken by hunters this year.

The CWD surveillance hunts are among the first steps that Fish and Game managers and the Fish and Game Commission are taking in response to CWD. After they have more information, Fish and Game staff will involve the public in the consideration of long-term management alternatives in response to what is learned from sampling.

The number of tags issued for the CWD surveillance hunts is in excess of the number of 775 samples needed, but Fish and Game staff will be monitoring the hunts and stop them as soon as enough samples have been collected.

“We ask both patience and understanding as we move forward with the CWD surveillance hunts, and as we gather more information,” Schriever said. “We will continue to provide updates to hunters and the public as we proceed and gather enough information to allow us all to clearly understand the extent of CWD and make informed decisions about future management.”
 
They could have required samples be taken from all animals harvested in those areas next year without adding any of these hunts. I’d bet it didn’t just show up this year.
If it turned up that far west, it’s been here awhile. Could’ve been inadvertently transported or …. Come from a domestic elk farm. I don’t think IFG needed to go to the extent of 1500 tags. A targeted kill might have been a better approach.
I do have to say that I was whitetail hunting before Thanksgiving in Slate Creek and kept running into a cow elk that didn’t seem right. I hadn’t heard of the positive tests at that point, so never really gave it much thought.
 
That might be a better place to start looking at
the domestic elk farm that is kind of close.
I agree, they should have waited to find out next year. it’s not like there is something they can do To stop the spread.
 
The McCall office this morning
parking lot full. Line out the door to edge of building And it’s a long building
 
The McCall office this morning
parking lot full. Line out the door to edge of building And it’s a long building
all for less then 100 buck tags

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