Georgia conservationists are putting hunters on high alert about the possibility of a deadly deer disease crossing the state border after the discovery of a case in North Florida.
The Georgia Wildlife Resources Division will carry out an emergency response once the state has its first detected case of chronic wasting disease. It can take as long as two years before an infected white-tailed deer shows zombie-like symptoms of listlessness, droopy head, severe weight loss, repetitive walking and drooling.
In June, a road-killed doe found 38 miles from Georgia’s southwest border made Florida the 31st state to report a confirmed case of a condition that has no treatment or vaccine and always results in death of the infected deer, moose and elk.
Public health and state wildlife officials are conducting a public awareness campaign to inform hunters and others how to react if they see deer in an area with the disease, which is similar to the affliction known as mad cow disease that spread in the 1990s.
The strategy for Georgia’s wildlife division is to establish a 5-mile radius where there is a confirmed presence of chronic wasting disease, with the boundaries shifting as more infections are discovered.