SW Indiana - This looks very much like EHD...

In years past a group called Indiana Whitetail Deer Herd Management tried to keep a real-time tracker based on reports of EHD....but I am not sure if they do it any more. They had purposed the question as to why the DNR couldn't do something like this and I am not sure what response they got. but to my knowledge it never materialized from the DNR perspective. You might do a search and see if they have one up and going for this year....I follow them on FB but don't recall seeing anything.

What I struggle with is that the DNR has no idea how many deer die/died from EHD here. A few years ago we had significant die offs and we then followed that up with record deer harvests....that set the wheels in motion of our reduced deer harvests ever since. I'm not saying it is the ONLY reason, but I am certain it was certainly a contributing factor.

EHD can have significant impact locally...yet we hear very little about it from our DNR based on official data released....because they don't have it! This is where to internet communities come in and we can share data and the like quickly with many more eyes out in the woods.

FYI Milkweed....I heard of a few being found in Crawford county as well....your not alone.
 
This article was released today.

LINK
 
I just started reading about this today. My new hunting property is in Owen County. Having EHD go through would be REALLY depressing.

In the 2008 timeframe EHD hit Bartholomew County hard, I had permission on property there. They found a huge typical 14pt dead within shot range of my bow stand, and more than a dozen others.
 
2013 was terrible here. '12 was bad too, but 13 took down many many deer. I cringe at the thought of having to rebuild again. Between ehd, cwd/sharpshooters, coyotes, and idiots, I should probably just get back into tennis.
 
I’m somewhat relieved that I have at least stopped finding any new victims over the past handful of days.
 
I saw on FB yesterday the group I listed now has a tracking means for EHD in the state....I will see if I can find the link and attach it.
 
This isn’t a bit fun, I can sure tell you that.

Another mature doe. I am starting to see lone fawns on trail cameras.
 

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Another observation this week.

I have been driving on highway 67 twice this week and sensed a strong smell of carrion. Once was next to the Wabash River and the other was the Eel River. I can only imagine how many stacked carcasses there are up and down those rivers. I reported this to the DNR also. I was basically told this year is significantly bad for EHD.

Another dread looms as we approach velvet shedding for bucks.

A good buddy of mine lives in Clark County and it was his cousin that sent in the first sample that came back as EHD this year. Said they found 6 dead deer in a 1/4 mile radius to begin with, which is essentially the same thing here so far, give or take on the distance. He said in 2012, they lost like 70% of the buck population once velvet shedding began. Apparently the virus spread by the midge uses the raw tissue as a direct blood supply to the brain. He said the whole county smelled like death for weeks. It sounds terrible. I sure hope we get some consistent rain in the next 2-3 weeks.
 
Above it talked about that all deer that get it die,I understood that not all deer will die from EHD and the way to tell if a deer has survived it was the sluffing hooves
 
Above it talked about that all deer that get it die,I understood that not all deer will die from EHD and the way to tell if a deer has survived it was the sluffing hooves

I have not heard of all deer being at risk. But I have heard of tremendous populations being decimated by it in certain years. I assume a large
Population of deer who are not immune to it sneak by a few years when the risk or presence of the disease is lower. Then, in a bad year, most of those deer would either get really sick or die. The sick deer breed on and a new population of vulnerable herds develop to die again 5-7 years later.

Just what I have read so far.
 
Thankfully we just got 4” of rain yesterday so it should keep it at bay. There has been confirmed cases here in Parke but I don’t think it was anything more then what we have come accustom to since it started showing up.
 
The rain won't "stop" the disease.....it simply makes the water more readily available and thus reduce concentrations of deer (making the disease more difficult to spread). I got some rain last night, but not sure how much. I also have not heard that ALL deer will die from it, but it certainly can be pretty serious in localized locations.

Not to steer this in a different direction, but does any body have any experience with Real World EHD mineral? I put the link below. I am not pushing/pimping this....I have never even used it. I just know that this is the only product out there that claims to be able to make deer resistant to EHD.....if they eat enough of it. Just thought this might be of interest.

https://www.realworldwildlifeproducts.com/ehd-expect-healthy-deer-technology/
 
The rain won't "stop" the disease.....it simply makes the water more readily available and thus reduce concentrations of deer (making the disease more difficult to spread). I got some rain last night, but not sure how much. I also have not heard that ALL deer will die from it, but it certainly can be pretty serious in localized locations.

Not to steer this in a different direction, but does any body have any experience with Real World EHD mineral? I put the link below. I am not pushing/pimping this....I have never even used it. I just know that this is the only product out there that claims to be able to make deer resistant to EHD.....if they eat enough of it. Just thought this might be of interest.

https://www.realworldwildlifeproducts.com/ehd-expect-healthy-deer-technology/

I heard an interview with DH about this last year. They sell feed pellets and minerals with the maximizer that through their own testing has shown good results with captive deer.

If it was financially feasible to help a local deer heard with small supplemental additives, I’d be open to it.
 
I heard an interview with DH about this last year. They sell feed pellets and minerals with the maximizer that through their own testing has shown good results with captive deer.

If it was financially feasible to help a local deer heard with small supplemental additives, I’d be open to it.
My thing was that you have no idea if local deer are getting enough of it to make a difference. Behind a fence is one thing....you can essentially force feed it to them....but wild deer, that's a whole other ballgame. I just thought it was interesting....
 
Another buck. It appears to have just started shedding at the ends. Probably 8-10 days ago. This one was found at a new location at the center of the property.

Shame. He had some potential.
 
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I am in Clark county and reports are everywhere of EHD. I have not walked my creeks yet but did find this buck Saturday while spraying plots. Smell lead me right to him.

Lots of guys around me have found lots of dead deer. I would say it’s gonna be a pretty bad outbreak for parts of the state. I had 4 mature bucks on cam this summer and have no pics of them in over a month. Assume they have died.
 

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Good news we should all be getting some rain.....hopefully this isn't too little too late!!!
I am in Clark county and reports are everywhere of EHD. I have not walked my creeks yet but did find this buck Saturday while spraying plots. Smell lead me right to him.

Lots of guys around me have found lots of dead deer. I would say it’s gonna be a pretty bad outbreak for parts of the state. I had 4 mature bucks on cam this summer and have no pics of them in over a month. Assume they have died.
Just report them and encourage others to report them as well. We can't expect the DNR to do anything about it if they don't know!
 
Who knows if it will rain or not. All the rain that has been going through the last week has somehow completely missed my farm. I was spraying saturday and it was storming all around and I just got 20 seconds of a few drops.

I reported mine on Saturday and will report any additional deer I find.
 
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