Will you eat it?

[mtman]

Would you eat it. This is my wives cow from 2013. It was so bad and malnutritioned that i was able to load the whole elk in the bed of my truck by myself. It had no back strap, its leg was sucked into the bone with a couple inches of meat on it. Its shoulder blades maybe weighed 25 pounds with the bone.

[steen]

Yes we would eat it.  You can tell bad meat from good by the look and smell.  We have butchered cows and had only one that had cancer and stunk. You can tell when meat is bad. Us e common sense!

[TikkaT3-270Shortmag]

The ones we have killed have been good eatin

[hillbillyhunting]

tag

[chester]

Been eating them for years, group had killed at least one since 2008 that had hoof rot. The meat is fine.


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[pianoman9701]

If the animal looks healthy aside from the hoof ... I'd eat it. 
Beef is graded after the animal is slaughtered and skinned. 
In other words I'd look at, and smell the meat.

I think of it as human toenail fungus gone crazy.   

The condition is being compared to hoof rot in domestic animals. I have seen no compelling evidence to suggest that it's the same disease. The WDFW tells us that they know what's causing this, but even a USDA scientist expressed her doubts as to whether this is the same disease. Personally, I would not eat these animals. If the disease they have is in fact leptospirosis, it can be transferred to humans and, in some cases, causes sever organ damage and even death. I kind of liken it to eating wild mushrooms. No free mushroom is worth dying for. If you don't know what it is, leave it in the woods. I feel the same about the affected animals.

[headshot5]

I've eaten a few.  They were in early stages of hoof rot.  You can usually gauge how bad off an elk is by general overall appearance.  If their eyes are sunk in and ribs sticking out I would pass.  I agree also on the smell and look of the meat.  I'm not afraid of a little hoof rot.  The problem is what else the infected elk has picked up after months of hobbling around getting weaker.  Piano, if you only saw some of the animals that go to slaughter...       

[pianoman9701]

I've eaten a few.  They were in early stages of hoof rot.  You can usually gauge how bad off an elk is by general overall appearance.  If their eyes are sunk in and ribs sticking out I would pass.  I agree also on the smell and look of the meat.  I'm not afraid of a little hoof rot.  The problem is what else the infected elk has picked up after months of hobbling around getting weaker.  Piano, if you only saw some of the animals that go to slaughter...     

I'm not doubting the safety of eating domestic animals with hoof rot, although there are lots of practices with the meat we buy that are really disturbing. I'm doubting that it's the same disease with elk.  If it isn't, and I don't know that for sure, eating them could be a real health risk.

[headshot5]

If it isn't, and I don't know that for sure, eating them could be a real health risk.

Everybody has to die of something, and it generally isn't happiness!  What I meant is I trust my judgement on suitable meat, but some of the animals that I have seen get sent to slaughter, I wouldn't feed my dog.  So, I'm skeptical of slaughterhouse's judement.  There are risks anytime you eat wild game.  I grew up on a farm, so I am comfortable making a judgement call based off of a short observation of the animal.

I won't judge anyone for passing on a limping elk.  Everyone has to make a choice based on what they are comfortable with.  I'd prefer to kill non-limping elk myself.     

   

[pianoman9701]

If it isn't, and I don't know that for sure, eating them could be a real health risk.

Everybody has to die of something, and it generally isn't happiness!  What I meant is I trust my judgement on suitable meat, but some of the animals that I have seen get sent to slaughter, I wouldn't feed my dog.  So, I'm skeptical of slaughterhouse's judement.  There are risks anytime you eat wild game.  I grew up on a farm, so I am comfortable making a judgement call based off of a short observation of the animal.

I won't judge anyone for passing on a limping elk.  Everyone has to make a choice based on what they are comfortable with.  I'd prefer to kill non-limping elk myself.     

You're implying that your experience with domestic animals qualifies you to make the judgement call on affected elk. I would agree with this were I confident that it's the same disease. I'm not, however. You can't make a judgement call on something you can't see. If the disease is actually leptospirosis, the symptoms of the disease are quite similar to domestic hoof rot - the hooves grow more rapidly and become deformed or fall of. But the disease is quite different. Zoonoses are diseases which can be contracted from animals by humans. Leptospirosis is one of these diseases. Domestic hoof disease is not. One of the objections from the USDA scientist at the June 3rd meeting is that if this IS the same disease, it seems to be manifesting differently. Whereas domestic hoof disease doesn't create atrophy of the muscle tissue, elk hoof disease does. This may be due to the ability to treat the hooves with antibiotic baths. But because the WDFW has no plans to capture and treat live affected animals as has been requested by Dr. Boone Mora, we'll apparently never know.

Yes, you do have to die from something. Does that mean that you should put a 220V wire in your mouth to find out if it's going to hurt you? If your answer is yes, then you should feel fine doing the same with affected elk meat.

[jongosch]

Giving meat the smell test is usually a fine method, however, some toxins are odorless as well as tasteless so that's obviously not always going to work.  For me the worry is not just whether the elk has hoof rot, but also whether it has been ingesting large quantities of herbicides through forage and water.  An elk or deer may be full of these chemicals but show now outward signs of illness. 

Now check this out.  From the National Center for Biotechnology Information:

"The statistically significant difference between atrazine concentration in the serum and urine samples of the study and control groups indicated that atrazine in the feed ingredients ingested by cattle could be transferred in to the biological samples and could be a potential hazard for human health."

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3481744/

I don't see any reason why elk would be safer than cattle in this regard.  And it's not likely that you're going to immediately feel sick if you eat meat that's full of herbicides, but in the long run they may make you more susceptible to all sorts of health problems.  As much as I love elk meat, I'm personally going to error on the side of caution and I think all hunters should have access to as much information as possible so they can make intelligent, informed decisions.  Unfortunately, there's not a lot of reliable information about how these herbicides get passed up the food chain.  Why not???  And what are we going to do to fix this problem?

[Tilley Rd]

No Way.

Nobody knows for sure what it is !

Most likely and probably safe.
Not good enough.

[headshot5]

Yes, you do have to die from something. Does that mean that you should put a 220V wire in your mouth to find out if it's going to hurt you? If your answer is yes, then you should feel fine doing the same with affected elk meat.

Like I said everyone has to make calls based on their comfort level.  Leptospirosis is also pretty well documented in almost all domestic animals. That being said abosolutely anything can kill you.  Weigh the risks and decide whether or not to put the bubble-boy suit on.  Do I target hoof rot elk for eating... No.   Will I eat an animal that I think will make me sick... No.  I try to take every precaution (I'm and engineer its in my nature).   I could switch to a vegetarian diet, but you still have to worry about salmonella and so on...  There is no sure fire way to keep from getting sick so every individual has to choose what risk level they take in life.  I've chosen mine, and so far it has kept me alive.   I don't run around willy nilly licking every hoof/or missing hoof of every dead elk I find.  I know is hard to judge someone by a few sentences on the internet and thus the default is to judge harshly.  Luckily, I'm confident with my decisions, and I have a healthy level of fear that helps me make solid decisions and take necessary precautions.  Oh and my tongue is definitely a volt/amp/ohm meter.  That is why my eyes sparkle and I don't have much nose hair.                             

I'm more scared of the level of STD's out there than sick elk.  That my friend is a gamble.  I'm not planning on giving up hunting so I guess I'm a risk taker.       

[boomstick]

It's all how u cook it hoof rot elk should be cooked to 160 or above. In 2012 had the state revalidate my tag. Even if they say you can eat it they can make you eat. And if its a bull you don't to keep anything you have to give the head back too.

[washelkhunter]

Is it really hunting if the animals you are pursuing are diseased, lame, crippled up and starving?