re: Chronic Wasting Disease Found in Arkansas Elk

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sure this is a stupid question, but how did this disease spread?

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It's not completely known. It is generally found in spinal tissue and the brain, but it appears to be able to be spread through saliva, urine, and feces. The ground can become contaminated when carcass remains are disposed of as well.

Although Arkansas has strict laws about bringing in carcasses from out of state (meat must be deboned and only a cleaned skull plate with antlers can be brought in) that would be my first guess on how the disease has shown up. A lot of hunters from that area of the state travel to Missouri ( a CWD positive state) to hunt. I find it highly unlikely that it could have come in with the Elk that were moved into the state 30 years ago and remained undetected until now.

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Isn't the difference between those states and ours, is that that are known for bigger bucks, but lack the quantity

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Outside of the gulf coastal plain Missouri, Kansas, and Iowa have a similar deer density to Arkansas.