Cwd podcast that is actually very good

[Telemark]

I think the idea of hired sharpshooters killing deer at night over bait is ridiculous.

Norway had a system where they let a bunch of hunters come in for a controlled hunt, and everything was heavily documented, and all the reindeer were tested. Seems like a much better way to handle an eradication hunt than spending money on what would otherwise be considered egregious poaching.

 

[Howboutthemdawgs]

The other thing that rubs me wrong about sharp shooters is it is such a drastic measure that is in no way proven to actually work. The results of that being a mistake in policy could set individuals back years from having a enjoyable deer herd again.

 

[Brian662]

The other thing that rubs me wrong about sharp shooters is it is such a drastic measure that is in no way proven to actually work. The results of that being a mistake in policy could set individuals back years from having a enjoyable deer herd again.

It's the absolute worst decision these game departments can make, IMO.

 

[gjs4]

So....I have been looking to sell a property I own and 1031 that into an "I"state. found an offline, below radar, area at a good price. Noted the adjacent counties have CWD and sharpshooting. Called the DNR and three weeks later, yesterday, they called back. They had a confirmation in this county and this coming year (next month) will have sharpshooting. They go 3mi out (so 9sqmi) from the positive location. I would be safe for now BUT i am not into tying up retirement for a potential problem like this. However...the biologist said some interesting things (and he was a hunter). He felt the shooter program would be dying out, especially in low prevalence areas, due to a lack of resources. He also mentioned many quote the lack of success with shooters and they know it does not appear to be a solution. It was mentioned that this state goes to owners/neighbors first for permission but will go to public properties within the 9mi everytime. If they dont offer up many kills, its short lived. The new twist was farmer damage permits....these folks are also a first priority visit for the Chris Kyle Piles and they will now be given more permits than in the past within cwd areas. All good things to know and share.....

 

[Ben.MN/WI]

It will be interesting to see what happens to the deer herd in SW WI. If that herd drops annually like the Arkansas deer herd referenced above, things there will go downhill shortly. If that happens, we'll know about how long we have until the hunting declines in our areas. My area of SE MN is about 15 years behind SW WI and the CWD spread race.

I'll be putting in another pond next spring to diversify my land a bit to offer opportunities for critters other than deer.

If/when CWD causes deer population declines, will we see more interest in hunting properties in CWD free zones (northern MN, WI)? The $10k/acre wooded sections of Buffalo County would dramatically drop in value as a squirrel property. Properties with ag rental income should hold value in the long run, but the completely wooded parcels with value tied to deer hunting may see a price decline if the deer numbers tank (not saying that will happen, but if the Arkansas study is accurate, it seems possible).

 

[Howboutthemdawgs]

Turning mine into a dirt bike track just to piss off my neighbors

 

[Mortenson]

Turning mine into a dirt bike track just to piss off my neighbors

Hah. We tried re-zoning a piece once upon a time. Hippies were protesting. I threatened to make it the gaudiest nudey bar with the brightest blinking lights if things didn't go our way.

 

[Hoytvectrix]

It will be interesting to see what happens to the deer herd in SW WI. If that herd drops annually like the Arkansas deer herd referenced above, things there will go downhill shortly. If that happens, we'll know about how long we have until the hunting declines in our areas. My area of SE MN is about 15 years behind SW WI and the CWD spread race.

I'll be putting in another pond next spring to diversify my land a bit to offer opportunities for critters other than deer.

If/when CWD causes deer population declines, will we see more interest in hunting properties in CWD free zones (northern MN, WI)? The $10k/acre wooded sections of Buffalo County would dramatically drop in value as a squirrel property. Properties with ag rental income should hold value in the long run, but the completely wooded parcels with value tied to deer hunting may see a price decline if the deer numbers tank (not saying that will happen, but if the Arkansas study is accurate, it seems possible).

I think of this as being one of the Black Swan events that could really disrupt recreational property values. I'm not really sure this is happening in areas that have had really bad CWD outbreaks and/or management. With that said, I would think that it would be very concentrated wherever it happened, and it likely wouldn't affect the market as a whole all that much.

I think the people that would be most affected by this very unlikely scenario would be the property flippers, which wouldn't be a bad thing in my opinion. I don't get the impression that very many on this forum are buying land just to flip it.

 

[bwoods11]

Just checked the testing results for Iowa, Sauk, Dane, and Richland counties in WI, ground zero area for the initial positive tests... positive results as high as 37% in Richland as low as 18% in Dane county. These are the 2025 results with more tests pending.

What I've *heard* is that the testing results come in higher initially during archery season because the likelihood of older age class bucks are taken. Then during gun season the does and younger bucks getting harvested mellow out the test results a bit.

Do landowners find any dead bucks from CWD on their farms after the season ? While shed hunting etc… ? Seems like high percentage?

 

[swampbuck]

The area where my property has been 20-30% prevalence for cwd for the past few years. Ive only had the property for 3 years but have heard at one time it was overrun with deer. This past season I averaged 1 deer per sit. Its in south central wisconsin so hard to attribute it to cwd with all of the other changes over the years. I do get pictures of 4+ year old deer though, more than I ever got running cameras on public land in more populated areas. There are still nice ones shot in the area.

Based on what I have seen it hasn't impacted land prices in this area, but I wonder if that day will come.

 

[swampbuck]

Do landowners find any dead bucks from CWD on their farms after the season ? While shed hunting etc… ? Seems like high percentage?

I am not far from there and I have not found a dead buck that died from cwd. Although I'm not sure if id be able to tell. Have seen a couple of bucks this year though that didn't look right. Had one in my backyard that looked rough and had little worry about being around people.

 

[Brian662]

Do landowners find any dead bucks from CWD on their farms after the season ? While shed hunting etc… ? Seems like high percentage?

I haven't heard of anyone reporting that but for the first time this season we had one doe that was skin and bones all summer, she was definitely sick and I would have shot her and let her lay, tbh. Never encountered her and haven't seen a pic of her in a few months.

 

[Hoytvectrix]

I haven't heard of anyone reporting that but for the first time this season we had one doe that was skin and bones all summer, she was definitely sick and I would have shot her and let her lay, tbh. Never encountered her and haven't seen a pic of her in a few months.

That has been our observation with a few does as well. We always find a few older dead heads when shed hunting, but it is hard to say what the cause was. So far, the nearest positive test is about 1.5 miles from any of our properties.