HOOK AND FUR By Bob Brown Ever since hoof deformities caused by treponeme bacteria were discovered in southwest Washington elk herds, the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife (WDFW) has been attempting to find a cure for the disease. Treponeme bacteria, known to cause digital dermatitis in cattle, sheep and goats, has plagued the livestock industry for decades but has never been documented in elk or other wildlife. Currently, there is no vaccine for the disease, and there are no proven options for treating it in the field, It is believed the bacteria persists in moist soil and spreads to new areas on hooves of infected elk. To minimize the spread of the disease, WDFW required hunters to remove the hooves of any elk taken in the affected areas and leave them on site. During the 2015-16 hunting season, this rule applied to Game Management Units 501-564 and 642- 699 in southwest Washington. A good plan, but it didn't stop the spread of the disease. Last month, WDFW sent hooves from three elk harvested by hunters in Whatcom County, plus an abnormal hoof taken from an elk recently killed in a vehicle collision in Skagit County east of Sedro-Woolley, to Colorado State University to test for treponeme-associated hoof disease. Results came back negative for the elk from Whatcom County, but the sample from the elk in Skagit County revealed microscopic evidence of treponeme bacteria, said Kristin Mansfield, WDFW epidemiologist. All four hooves tested by the university were from the North Cascades herd (also known as the Nooksack herd) which includes about 1,000 animals centered in Skagit and Whatcom counties. The disease is now suspected in Clark, Cowlitz, Grays Harbor, Lewis, Mason, Pacific, Skamania, Thurston, and Wahkiakum counties. Could it be blacktail deer in those areas have also been infected? The department has not commented on that possibility.
Bob Brown is a freelance outdoors writer. He can be reached at robertb1285@centurylink.net
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