Amongst the pandemic, there have been recent reports of deer deaths on the Gulf Islands. The causation is unclear but it is suspected it is from Adenovirus hemorrhagic disease (AHD). There are no known cases to date in BC. After the death of more than 60 deer, Wildlife Health Officials became suspicious and believe that this disease is responsible. The first reports of this disease happened in California and Oregon as they had a couple of outbreaks.

Helen Schwanpje, the Provincial Wildlife Veterinarian, has collected tissue samples from the first couple of animals and sent them to a California lab for further testing. She is 99% sure that this is the problem that the deer are facing, “I’ve asked that the tissues from the first couple of animals that were sent to the lab, to be sent to California for confirmation, and that’s why I say that it’s suspected up here because we don’t have it one hundred percent proven but to be honest I’m more than ninety percent if not ninety-nine percent sure that’s what we are dealing with.” The symptoms that the deer face are difficulty breathing, foaming or drooling from the mouth, diarrhea, and seizures.

There is no need to worry about the disease unless you are a mule deer, white-tailed deer, elk, moose, or a caribou. There is no evidence that this disease can be transmitted to humans, but people are advised to not consume meat from a dead animal or an animal that seems ill to be safe.

If you encounter a deer that is experiencing symptoms of sickness, report it to the Wildlife Health Laboratory at 250-751-7246.