SALT LAKE CITY, Utah, March 15, 2024 (Gephardt Daily) — So far so good, say Utah wildlife officials of testing for brucellosis in Utah’s elk population.
“Brucellosis, a disease that causes cow elk to abort their young, is currently found in elk herds in neighboring states,” the state Division of Wildlife Resources posted online Thursday.
“Every winter, we test elk for brucellosis at the Hardware Wildlife Management Area (formerly known as Hardware Ranch at the top of Blacksmith Fork Canyon east of Hyrum in Cache County).
“After drawing blood from 40 cow elk recently, we have good news to report: None of the elk had the disease!” In addition to drawing blood and giving the cow elk a health checkup, the DWR said, staff also placed radio collars on 15 adult elk and 50 calf elk — 19 males and 31 females.
“Collaring the calves will help us identify the migration corridors the elk are using and know how many calves are surviving from year to year.
“The collars will also allow us to track the animals and know if they’re coming in contact with collared elk from brucellosis-positive areas in Wyoming and Idaho.
“Many thanks to students from the College of Veterinary Medicine at Utah State University for helping us draw blood!”
