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State pilots hunter incentives to remove diseased elk as hoof disease spreads
Summary
Agency presenters described treponeme‑associated elk hoof disease across much of western Washington, experimental incentive programs (passive hoof submission and master‑hunter permits) designed to preferentially remove diseased animals, and a WSU research partnership funded by the legislature.
Kyle Garrison, the ungulate section manager, told the wildlife committee that treponeme‑associated elk hoof disease (TAD) is a bacterial syndrome that often progresses from small lesions to severe hoof loss, lameness and reduced survival in affected elk.
"Infected elk have reduced body condition," Garrison said, and he cited Mount St. Helens research showing infected elk had substantially lower pregnancy rates and reduced survival compared with uninfected animals.
Staff described a two‑pronged incentive program to preferentially remove diseased individuals without increasing overall harvest pressure. The first prong uses passive hoof submission bins and a random‑draw special permit reward to encourage reporting of hooves with deformities; the second prong is a controlled draw for master hunters in focal high‑prevalence areas who receive a second elk tag and are asked to select animals showing signs of disease. Garrison provided program participation figures for 2021–2025 for the master‑hunter prong (210 permits issued, 122 reported harvests submitted, 84% of submitted hooves showing disease signs) and said the program is intended as a low‑effort pilot to test whether selective harvest can reduce disease prevalence in focal areas.
Garrison also outlined prevalence estimation methods using hunter harvest survey questions as an index: Western Washington hunters report whether harvested animals showed hoof deformities on harvest reports, which the department uses as an index to track trends and target sampling. He noted harvest‑based indices have caveats but said they have been consistent enough to show hotspots such as Mount St. Helens and the Willapa Hills.
The department described its research partnership with Washington State University (legislatively funded in 2017) that supports captive studies and environmental risk factor analysis; WSU remains the legislatively mandated regional research lead and the department said a new WSU lead will start this fall following a retirement. Garrison said the department will continue to support surveillance, incentivized submissions and field experiments to better understand transmission and potential control options.
Commissioners asked about genetic resilience and the possibility of long‑term habitat management to improve nutritional status and reduce disease impacts; staff said genetics are an area for future research and that improving habitat and nutrition is a likely long‑term mitigation pathway.
