Help Missouri Deer Farmers

Thanks for the money article. Printed and will take with me to meeting tonight .


I am in a comment war with a few people in our local newspaper on the article about the governor receiving more veto emails than not and it is unreal what a few people are saying. The last comment was how much money deer farmers and the big backers they have to support them......bahaaaaa. Now I have the information to comment back on how money the MDC has. Thanks.


The more I read the madder I get about this and when I read the MDC harvest numbers for 2012-2013 it was the 3rd largest. It states every county in Missouri was effected by EHD but only 1 by CWD. Why are they not doing anything about EHD? Oh they would have to kill cows who are hosts but the MDA is over the cattle industry...Thank the Lord. I am just totally amazed at the lies. 

Guess what? The truth is that the number of supporters of the bill far out numbers the number against it. I don't have the exact numbers but it appears that they are only counting the veto due to deer farming against the sign due to deer farming. So if you sent one in supporting it and don't mention deer farming as your reason, they haven't counted it. The cattlemen alone have sent in over 1600 and they support both the bill and us! But they are not being counted because they don't mention deer farming...even though they support our legislation..... What a crock....Again...!!!


 


Another bad article!

Can any one give the number of deer that died in the state of Missouri from EHD in 2012 on farms, preserves and in the wild? How many have died from CWD in Missouri? Also how did the first one in captivity die? They have numbers as 10 in wild and 11 in captivity but did they kill them or did they die of CWD? 

I would be willing to bet they all died from a bullet.  None died from CWD.  Very few deer live long enough to actually die from CWD.


Gary

In Missouri they were all hunter harvested healthy animals that died from a bullet.

There was one free ranging deer that was poor that tested positive but they didn't test it for anything else like pneumonia or ehd

The incubation period of CWD is believed to be around 3 years, correct. If a deer does not contact cwd for a year and most deer that are shot are 1.5 to 2.5, with probably less than 5% being over 3, CWD will never effect the wild population. I am curious how old the average deer lives to be in the wild if not harvested. I would also like to know if any deer had died of cwd, how old where they?

None have been documented to have died of CWD in Missouri.

Sam has anyone asked Governor Nixon to take a tour of a deer farm in Missouri. If they have an he hasn't visited one yet maybe everyone could urge him to visit a farm in missouri to see what deer farming is all about. I would be glad to send another e-mail to him and ask him to please visit a farm. I guess we could give him the number to the mwbhra to setup a time to tour one.

It seems impossible to ever even get to talk to the governor here in Missouri. That's part of the overall problem here. He doesn't work with or talk to anyone...period.  I have a feeling we will have to override and override we will.

GREAT POINT Gary, Sam and Show me Racks, If the incubation period is 3 years, It really wouldn't affect the wild population because the wild deer seldom ever reach 4 years old. Maybe some does but very few bucks. I've never thought of it that way, you probably will never find a deer dying from CWD, it's always a healthy one from a bullet.

According to the QDMA in Missouri in 2010, 45% of harvested bucks were 1.5, 35% were 2.5, and 20% were 3.5 years old. They do not mention any over 4.5 years old. I am sure there are some, but there charts do not show it. I was curious if this was recorded anywhere. Keep in mind, the QDMA's goal is to get people to shot older bucks, so while the numbers may not be skewed, the judgin of the ages may be.

http://www.qdma.com/uploads/pdf/WR2012.pdf

See page 7.

Brad , in Minnesota,  I saw the DNR's number several years ago, and they said 79% of the bucks in Minnesota died at 1 1/2 years old.


Gary

Two years ago I was speaking with my conservation agent and asked him if any big bucks had been harvested in the area. He told me none that he considered big, since they are all so young. He then told me he aged deer at a check station and 90% of them where a year and a half old and very few where three. The QDMA was the only site I could find any information put on paper.

New article in the Springfield News Leader and it actually had a sentence reading this, "this disease has a history of moving from captive deer to wild deer". These idiots have absolutely no morals against flat out lying.

Ok so I am back from the Conservation event. This event for future people that are going to attend need to bring plenty of people as they have a sheet to sign at the CWD station on the bill that is on the Governors desk stating are you in FAVOR or OPPOSE. Also many cards to voice your opinion.


I must state that myself and another local deer farmer, Farris Adams, were the only two on the list after  2 1/2 hours on the list for opposing the veto.


Here is my  story.


I was there when the doors first opened and of course drew many looks as I am a female. I greeted the people at the door and took the cards they asked to fill out, by the way there are tons of cards to fill out and voice your opinion.   As I approached each station all agents were kind and interested in talking. The station I was most interested in of course was the CWD. They had information and ONE diagram and it was confusing and of the State of WY!?!?   As I looked over the information I then signed the paper AGAINST the veto. I was the first to sign in opposition! The Conservation employee Charles Anderson was watching and ready to talk to me as to why? He actually explained what I was signing, I guess thinking I did not know what I was doing and tried to get me to rethink which one I was signing.I stated that I knew which one and I was opposed. I began my talk about how CWD will NOT wipe out the deer population and that the misinformation that they are putting out is very concerning to me. We carried on a very civil conservation for quite sometime and he was a bit taken back that I knew anything, (I am a blonde), sometimes he had no answers for me. I finally asked him about Dr. Kroll and what he has stated on the subject. Low and behold this guy was a student under him in Texas. So I said, "Do you not agree with his findings or opinions?" He looked me in the eye and said, "I do not agree with him." I asked why and he stated because he has not done ONE study on CWD!!! I stated that he has gone over all the studies that have been done by many, (referring to The White Paper) and all he could keep saying is that he has not done one study. I sure hope Dr.Kroll flunked this kid. In fact if I was a betting person I would say Charles has never hunted a day in his life nor been outside in our beautiful State of Missouri. He lives in Jefferson City and I am sure sits in an office and has no idea about the real outdoors. TRUST me on this one!!! So all you others that are attending these events please meet Charles Anderson and let me know your opinion. He was due to give interviews so I graciously left and said you may need to prepare. I moved on and met up with the NPR local radio gal with Southeast Missouri University and asked if she needed an opposing opinion, she was new on the job so I carried the conversation and told her about a previous segment they did with Dr. Kroll and how he stated Missouri should not waste millions of dollars to fix CWD. I gave her the date of the airing. She stated she only gets a few minutes for this story. It airs at 6am. I am not sure I will be up for that in the morning. I am hoping they replay it.


Finally I sat down to begin filling out my opinions on the many cards given to you for your input on each of the subject matter. Another local deer farmer (Rattle Snake Ridge, Farris Adams) and co owner of Texas Tebow with me came and preceded to ask Charles many questions and give his concerns. After he was finished we sat and discussed our stories and low and behold (God is good) the Southeast Missourian reporter came over to us as she listened in on Farris and his conversation with Charles on the new rules and CWD. She has been writing on this for some time and has never had an opposing view or the deer farmers view. She was really interested!! Sam I believe she has called you many times for information, which you were very willing to give but now she had some local people that she could meet. She did not know how close our deer farms were to Cape Girardeau, MO and that they even existed. We shared many things about us and our business and our concerns. We shared pictures of our fawns, does and bucks. We are praying that she writes it favorable to us. We will find out in the morning. She was quite willing to hear us and we greatly appreciated that. Just having the chance to share our love for this industry and how we care about CWD and other issues and how important they are to us because of the money we have invested in our deer and the love we have for deer farming made my day. I don't know if we have made a difference but I tried.


Doing this is a non combative and Christian way I believe is the way to handle this. The only way people of opposing interest will listen to you is if you do not attack them. I truly think the MDC is a great thing, even though they have too much money and now are angered and on the defensive about this issue. 


After my experience tonight I know that God might be smiling down because of the way I handled myself. I really wanted to go in there and kick some ass, BUT that is not how I was raised nor my husband. We all need to work to resolve this so as to secure the future of the business of deer farming and the hunting preserves. 


Missouri deer farmers please show up at these meetings in your areas and be respectful in your talks and concerns. Write them all down on the cards given. If you can not attend they said you can voice your opinions on their website. 


Thank you to all who helped me gather information. Even though we no longer have a deer farm but only owners of some deer and LOTS of semen..to sell I will continue to help you all in anyway I can. I have met some wonderful people in this business and I do miss it at times, but I sure love spending time with my grand babies now, but I will always be a proud deer farmer!!

The MDC keeps bringing up Wyoming.  I have read 3 different reports put out by Wyoming Conservation.  Not one report even mentions CWD as one of the causes to their decline.  The MDC is trying to link the decline in Wyoming to CWD.  This is an out-and-out lie.  You need to call them out on this at these meetings.


Gary


 


Here are some highlights you can use to confront the MDC if you go to their meetings:


 
16px;TimesWyoming
16px;Times ;' ';12pxCauses for the decline vary, and most experts point to a combination of many things, including energy development, harsh winters, poaching and highway deaths.
' 'In its report to WAFWA, Wyoming noted that the decline was evident as early as the late 1980s, when fawn production began to decline, blamed on “decreasing habitat availability and/or quality.�
' ' 
' '“Throughout Wyoming, mule deer populations have declined by an estimated 168,000 (31 percent) since 2000. After the 2011 hunting seasons, it was estimated there were 376,000 mule deer in the state. This is 24 percent below the statewide objective of 564,650 mule deer,� Wyoming’s WAFWA report stated.
' ' 
' 'One theory behind the animals’ decline is a loss of habitat, or changes to existing habitat.
' ' 
' 'Lutz, from Wyoming Game and Fish, said his agency once believed that winter habitat was the most important factor in ensuring the deer’s survival.
' ' 
' 'Although drought may be a major player in the decline of mule deer, there is a laundry list of other occurrences affecting mule deer habitats, including weed infestations by nonnatives, especially species like cheatgrass that can spread rapidly following fires.
' 'Some studies suggest that the increase in logging during America’s building boom, settlement of the West and the mining boom, may have opened up the forest floor to species more palatable to mule deer in the early 1900s, promoting what some have termed the golden era of mule deer.
' 'Longtime Wyoming hunter Mike Eastman, who has written two books on mule deer, said the lack of hunting during World War II also helped mule deer populations blossom in that era. He puts part of the blame for the population decline on liberal hunting seasons following World War II.
' 'Eastman blames the lack of predator control, suppression of fire and the encroachment of development on deer habitat as the top three reasons for the declining mule deer populations.
' ' 
' 'Other possible suspects in the decline of mule deer are competitors for the same resources — animals like elk, whose numbers have climbed in many regions of Montana, as well as cattle.
' ' 
' '; Read more: http://billingsgazette.com/lifestyles/recreation/studies-states-seek-to-halt-mule-deer-population-decline/article_e6a17e99-01dd-50ed-9edb-f39c976d9db3.html#ixzz35eYO28Mk


 


 

email sent

Too bad there are no big auctions right now. I am sure we could get more than enough signatures to counter any the MDC is getting. I am not sure how much weight things like that have. MRBUG, thanks for representing at the get together.

Looks like the Gov did not see the light. I guess the fight continues!!!