Hoof Rot still a problem in SW units

[pianoman9701]

Sometimes, a medical condition that seems simple to address isn't. Billions have been spent on finding a cure for cancer.  Is there no cure yet because people don't care?

There is little doubt in my mind that WDFW is aware of the hoof rot situation, and is not ignoring it. If they had unlimited resources perhaps a solution would be found more quickly.  They don't.  Let's all hope that something can be done soon.

 

This is a very emotional topic and I also am deeply concerned about hoof rot. But, I'm hearing a lot of assumptions that the DFW isn't doing anything about this. Those assumptions are wrong. I know they are. They may not be jumping to quick fixes (and quick fixes usually do more harm than good), but you'd better believe that the health of our elk populations is of the utmost importance. Without elk and the revenue that they generate, these folks know they're out of a job. Thanks for the link, Bob.

I'm sure there are volunteer projects available if you contact Kristin Mansfield or even Dave Ware. I guarantee you'll get less cooperation if you go on the offensive towards the Dept and go in assuming that you care more than they about hoof rot. However, if you're willing to put in a few hours of your free time, I'm quite sure it'll be used wisely if they have something for you to do. What is your priority, to do with this? Is it to rail against the department or to work toward curing this terrible disease? This is an important question to ask yourself.

[jbeaumont21]

So after reading this it says that our elk are GROSSLY DEPLEATED of Copper and SELENIUM  why do n't they at least put out thousands of mineral blocks with high doeses of this in it.

Sure would like to know if this would help.  I would be willing to haul out several mineral blocks to my hunting grounds as I'm sure everyone else would be as well.  Where can we purchase these mineral blocks from and would it be hurting anything if we all just took the initiative and started distributing them in the woods on our own? I just feel like we should do something.

[WSU]

If copper and/or selenium are the cause, it doesn't seem that it would be practical to be supplementing the elk in SW Wa indefinitely.  And, if it is a deficiency, what would have caused it to become such a large problem so quickly?

[nontypical176]

I have the Copper/Selenium blocks out at my place, and have for the last 4 years.  The deer like them more than the elk and all the elk still have hoof rot even though there are multiple licks to choose from.  I also read a report, somewhere, that there are elk in other areas that are more Copper Selenium deficient than the hoof rotted elk here and they don't have hoof issues.

My friend works for the WDFW says that hoof rot was ignored for years and now that its finally became a major problem the WDFW has started to move on it.  She is upset with them and says they always claim funding was the reason why more hasn't been done, and also said most of the efforts had been half a** at best.  Still no studies have been done to try and cure or experiment on a living elk....pathetic.  Though they are consulting with veterinarians around the world now.  To me the common sense thing to do is....capture an infected elk, keep it in some kind of pen, poke it with needles, change diet, give it a shot of penicilen, you know put together an honest scientific effort into finding an answer.  The trueth is that nobody has any idea what is happening to our elk, only guesses and speculation.  Treat just one elk like it was human and we might find the answer for all, but of course funding is always an issue.

On another note, all the elk that come around my place have hoof rot, but once again the cows are raising calves.  No matter how bad they limp or sickly they act, they continue to reproduce year after year and the herd hasn't shown any signs of getting smaller, just in a lot more pain.  Elk are tough there is no doubt about that.

[videorc]

OK I have sent an email requesting information on what is being done and how we may help if at all. I will post their reply as soon as I receive any. Thanks for posting the link to the WDFW Hoof Rot study publication.

[tonymoe]

I did some electrical work for a old farmer clear up tower road out of castle rock this last month. He said he used to have a hundred head of elk in his field every night. Little by little the numbers kept getting smaller. He said he wasn't sure what was going on. So, he started watching them more closely and started seen all of them limping/hopping around. The numbers haVe dwindled over the last 5 years and he says he might get 10-20 head in his field a couple times a month?
I felt sick to my stomach! That herd has gone through a lot over the years. Which brings something else to mind.......I remember the WDFW transplanting elk from the st. Helen's herd into different areas in the past. Has anyone seen problems elsewhere? I can't remember all the places, but I think one of those areas was the green river are?

[HntnFsh]

If copper and/or selenium are the cause, it doesn't seem that it would be practical to be supplementing the elk in SW Wa indefinitely.  And, if it is a deficiency, what would have caused it to become such a large problem so quickly?

I dont think this is the root of the problem. Cant imagine that one day many years ago those minerals just disapeared.

[windygorge]

http://wdfw.wa.gov/publications/01124/wdfw01124.pdf

[RadSav]

I just started seeing it over the south hill in the lower Toutle and Yale.  Looks like about 20-25% of those I've seen so far this year.  That's the first that I know of for sure down here.  I can see "Permit Only" hunting coming soon for the majority of westside.  If we get a bad winter in '12/'13 the kill  is going to be huge.  Sure hope I'm wrong. 

[Killmore]

If its truly hoof rot it wouldn't spread ,must be something contagious.culling the herd might be the answer. once wolves show up problem will take care of itself....

[nontypical176]

The areas it started at where I live are all down low around houses and farms.  It is moving out from there and starting to reach the hills and private timberlands farther out.  If I had to guess I think its something they are eating.  We have more invasive species showing up all the time and most are started by people.  Every once in a while the elk show up at my place and I see one that doesn't have a limp at all, and you can especially tell with bulls because a bull with hoof rot usually has horns that grow uneven or goofy from what I've seen.  If I see a bull with nice even horns, they are never limping and believe me its a rare site to see an elk from where I live that isn't limping.  Maybe for some reason these unaffected elk have chosen not to eat the new plants. 

Plants like Tanzy have been known to cause problems for some species and now we have scothbroom forests, japanese knotweed and an entire list of other invasives thats not just limited to plants but bugs and small critters that may be clinging to a consumed piece of grass as well.  My friends goats escaped their pen and got into the neighbors ornamental garden once, 3 days later they were all dead from something they had eaten.  If I remember right the deer mainge problem we had for a while they figured was caused by a snail or something that was inadvertantly being consumed. Hope we find an answer soon.

[meathacker]

It doesn't have anything to do with the plants.  I'm sure it started at a farm.  Its a bacteria infection that can live with out a host for over a week.  so if a cow(beef) had it and was in a field then elk came into the field a week later and were feeding in the same area they could become infected.  with elk being pack animals and always traveling single file it makes it very easy for a whole herd to become infected.  then rut comes along and brings bulls from out of the herd in.  it just continues to spread.  Hoof Rot spreads very easy with livestock.  once an animal is infected it is removed from the herd and treated to prevent it from spreading to the whole herd.  Another part of the problem is there are over 40 types of hoof rot.  The state has not yet narrowed down with strain it is.  that is one of the biggest things that needs to be figured out.  I talked to the state vet a couple weeks ago and they are working on figuring that out.  once they have that answered it will make the path much more clear on what can be done for treatment... if any

[blackveltbowhunter]

What I dont understand is why, WDFW wont at least bandaid the problem and quit issueing  a million antlerless tags at the most vulnerable time of year. 

[pianoman9701]

It doesn't have anything to do with the plants.  I'm sure it started at a farm.  Its a bacteria infection that can live with out a host for over a week.  so if a cow(beef) had it and was in a field then elk came into the field a week later and were feeding in the same area they could become infected.  with elk being pack animals and always traveling single file it makes it very easy for a whole herd to become infected.  then rut comes along and brings bulls from out of the herd in.  it just continues to spread.  Hoof Rot spreads very easy with livestock.  once an animal is infected it is removed from the herd and treated to prevent it from spreading to the whole herd.  Another part of the problem is there are over 40 types of hoof rot.  The state has not yet narrowed down with strain it is.  that is one of the biggest things that needs to be figured out.  I talked to the state vet a couple weeks ago and they are working on figuring that out.  once they have that answered it will make the path much more clear on what can be done for treatment... if any

They don't think so, according to the study found here and cited earlier in the thread:
http://wdfw.wa.gov/publications/01124/wdfw01124.pdf

This study may point to a deficiency in copper, but more data. In the top right sections they pretty much ruled out bacterial or viral infections.

At this point, they still don't know. Who knows? It may have something to do with the layer of ash covering needed minerals in the soil, considering that much of the area involved was in the blast zone and flood plain.

As far as the antlerless tags being issued, maybe they're trying to cull out the affected animals and think ethical hunters will target the ones having a hard time moving around. Just a thought. Maybe call Dave Ware or the researchers Susan Han or Kristin Mansfield at WSU.

[meathacker]

thats not what i got out of that at all.  It said that 5 of 6 had bacterial hoof rot and 1 0f 6 had a different type of bacteria that had caused an absese.  The Copper deficiency is not what is causing the problem.  Its not helping but its not the problem.  when they are copper deficent it give them an impaired immune system. which makes it hard to fight off the the infection. 

Im not an expert but i would also think that the ash would be full of minerals.  but i do understand your point and that could be part of the mineral issue.  In my experiance with mineral licks.  the Elk dont seam to use them much.  the deer do.  that may just be the area though.

I think culling the herd maybe a good option.  Im not against it.  would it suck? yes but if its better for the long range im for it.