The Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture has recently confirmed a positive test for chronic wasting disease (CWD) in a white-tailed deer on a Warren County, PA hunting preserve.

The remaining deer on the preserve were euthanized and CWD was not detected in any of the samples. The Department of AG officials quarantined the preserve for the next five years and said contact tracing to determine any further exposure of CWD is in process and may necessitate additional quarantines.

Warren County, PA borders both Cattaraugus and Chautauqua counties in western New York. The New York DEC issued a statement, “Chronic wasting disease is a real threat to New York’s wild and moose populations, and the latest detection in Pennsylvania brings the disease to our border. We’re encouraged by the swift actions of officials in PA and that CWD was not detected in other captive deer.”

The Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture oversees the state’s deer farming industry. Pennsylvania’s 760 breeding farms, hunting preserves and hobby farms provide breeding does, breeder and trophy bucks, semen, embryos, antlers and urine products to Pennsylvania and other states across the nation.

In 2020, the PA department established a CWD Core Captive Management Zone, implementing aggressive measures to control the disease in the area of the state where it was most prevalent, while allowing deer farms to stay in business.

Both states New York and Pennsylvania will be working closely with each other and their respected agencies to try to combat CWD.

Fishing Tournament!

On Saturday, June 19 the 20th Annual Morningside Lake Fishing Classic Tournament will be held on Morningside Lake in Hurleyville. The tourney is sponsored by the Town of Fallsburg Parks & Recreation and the Hurleyville and Loch Sheldrake Fire Departments.

Trophies and a $50 lunker prize will be awarded to the anglers catching the heaviest bass, pickerel and walleye in each fish category.

Entry fee is $10 per person and competition fishing hours are 5AM to 1PM. For further information call Jack 845-436-5418 or Woody 845-434-3103.

Gun-Carry Expanded!

Permitless gun-carry laws are laws that allow law-abiding citizens to lawfully carry concealed firearms for personal protection without first seeking permission from the government.

There are now 20 states with the addition of Iowa and Tennessee that have adopted permitless gun-carry laws. In addition, Texas made history when it passed an NRA-supported permitless gun-carry bill H.B.1927 out of its House of Representatives and Senate for the first time. Texas Governor Greg Abbott has expressed his support of this bill and it looks like the Lone Star State will be number 21 soon. Clearly, this expansion of the right to self-defense is building up momentum nationwide.

Happy Fathers Day!

Jack Danchak is a longtime sportsmen and spent 30 years as the President of the Federation of Sportsmen’s Clubs of Sullivan County, Inc.