A second farmed deer in Alberta has tested positive for chronic wasting disease.
It came from the same white-tailed deer herd at Namao, Alta., where the first case surfaced Nov. 5.
The 290 head owned by Ray Heinen that included the two infected animals, and a 100-head herd closely related to the first, were slaughtered months ago.
Lynn Bates, veterinary program officer with the Canadian Food Inspection Agency, said tests done on the slaughtered animals revealed the second positive case in April.
There are still some test results pending on the affected herds, she said.
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Farmed cervids no longer live on this Alberta farm, she said, noting the sites would need to be cleaned and disinfected and then reassessed by CFIA before such animals were restocked there.
Bates said the second positive case was not publicly disclosed but the deer farmer was notified immediately of the finding.
“No media release was issued on this one,” she said.
That doesn’t sit well with Martin Sherren of the Alberta Fish and Game Association, who contends CFIA’s role is to help assure people they are eating safe food.
He has written a letter to federal agriculture minister Lyle Vanclief demanding full disclosure of all cases of CWD.
“When there’s something like this that has this kind of impact on the public, let’s not be silly and say we’ve done what we were supposed to,” he said. “Everyone deserves to know what’s going on.”
CWD, a fatal brain disorder, has affected 40 herds of farmed elk in Saskatchewan and one in Alberta. It has also been found in wild deer in Saskatchewan and now in farmed deer in Alberta.
