Eating Wild Critters, Safe or a Gamble?

[Losing_Sanity]

A boy died from eating a marmot that was infected with the plaque... Wow! Tragic end for the teenager, but it makes one think about what we are eating. Do we really know what we are getting with critters that we eat? I'am not aware of any cases in the US that would bring up concern, but it does make you wonder.

Kyrgyzstan teen dies after reportedly eating plague-infected marmot

A 15-year-old boy has died of the bubonic plague in Kyrgyzstand after reportedly eating an infected barbecued marmot.

www.foxnews.com

 

[Ajax2744]

This week they found boubonic plague in a squirrel in Colorado. And it's fairly common in Colorado prairie dog populations. Not that anyone would be eating them but the squirrel would worry me a little as those are tasty buggers

 

[Straight Arrow]

FWIW, my wife's rules: Eat no rodents. Eat no internal organs.

 

[greatwhitebuffalo]

This week they found boubonic plague in a squirrel in Colorado. And it's fairly common in Colorado prairie dog populations. Not that anyone would be eating them but the squirrel would worry me a little as those are tasty buggers

I saw this too. Wonder if it's been common, but not publicized? I'm betting that there would have been infections long ago if it were a true risk.

Might want to go with Medium-well/Well Done....

 

[Northwoods Labs]

Yea, my mother was freaking out about this. It does occur each year in the US, but very rare https://www.cdc.gov/plague/maps/index.html#:~:text=Over 80% of United States,in people ages 12–45.

 

[406LIFE]

I was speaking with Dr. Jennifer Ramsey, state wildlife vet for FWP about things like this a couple months ago. The red meats from ungulates are fine, with extremely low transmission rates for disease. When you move out of that, risk starts to go up. Whether it is significant or not is relative, but she wouldn't eat them. I'll see what she says about this marmot.

@Big Fin you eat that wolf yet?

 

[Big Fin]

@Big Fin you eat that wolf yet?

Nope. Got feedback from one disease ecologist who said it "should be OK, just cook the hell out of it." Then qualified the statement with "It wouldn't hurt to run that question by someone who is a specialist in canines."

Know any canine disease specialists?

 

[Aussie_hunter_JD]

Nope. Got feedback from one disease ecologist who said it "should be OK, just cook the hell out of it." Then qualified the statement with "It wouldn't hurt to run that question by someone who is a specialist in canines."

Know any canine disease specialists?

A main concern in my part of the world (not sure if it's in the states) with canines is hydatid tapeworm, you really don't want that. Mind you the risk would have been highest in handling the animal over well cooked meat. I never handle foxes without gloves because of it.

 

[MTLabrador]

I’d be a lot more worried about fleas on rodents and things that eat rodents (bobcat, fox, coyote, badger) than the meat itself. Lions carry plague pretty often as well.

 

[Deleted member 38069]

Might want to go with Medium-well/Well Done....

Woa woa woa! Let's not get carried away! I'd prefer to not eat shoe leather.

 

[TriStar Hunt]

Beware the prairie dog but also cougars/bobcat/lynx. Prairie dogs are carriers of bubonic plague and there have been (though very few) cases of people contracting it from direct exposure with an infected wild animal (under 10 cases a year from a variety of exposures). I remember a case of a ranger who contracted it from an infected cougar (I think it was Yellowstone where it’d been found and studied over time in cougars) he found in the wild. Again super duper uncommon and unlikely to contract it from your game, yet we are in a pandemic, the thought of contracting something is on all our minds, and it’s a great topic for discussion here. Thanks for the post!

 

[SFC B]

When I was being Med boarded in the Army I did an internship with Fort Carson FW. Part of our duties was documenting P-dog towns. Plotting locations, sizes, health of the town. We were very careful around plagued out towns. The only thing we did there was location and use bino to scan for evidence of burrowing owls using the holes. FoCo p-dogs were decimated badly several years back to the point that they are protected on post. Always creeped me out. Also, there are always a couple of cases of humans (usually kids) that get the plague around Pueblo every year from screwing around with them.

 

[Losing_Sanity]

FWIW, my wife's rules: Eat no rodents. Eat no internal organs.

It always freaks me out when someone eats a mouse or two on those survival shows. That's just gross. Seems there would be some sort of nasty thing to catch from eating them. But they suck the meat right off those little bones.

 

[LuketheDog]

Also, there are always a couple of cases of humans (usually kids) that get the plague around Pueblo every year from screwing around with them.

We spent six years in Pueblo, and you're not kidding, seemed like at least once per year you'd hear about someone getting it...

 

[Hilljackoutlaw]

Was this boy starving and in dire straights?
Or just eating a marmot for the joy of eating a marmot?
Am I the only one that finds it weird as chit that someone is just casually bbqing up marmot on a tuesday afternoon all the while not participating in the show Alone?

 

[Losing_Sanity]

Was this boy starving and in dire straights?
Or just eating a marmot for the joy of eating a marmot?
Am I the only one that finds it weird as chit that someone is just casually bbqing up marmot on a tuesday afternoon all the while not participating in the show Alone?

I kind of got the impression that there they're eating what they can to survive, giving where he lived. But I don't know...


Maybe you could Bar-B-Que one up and let us know if it's worth trying. Might be a delicacy.

Yellow-bellied Marmot (Marmota flaviventris) | Idaho Fish and Game

idfg.idaho.gov

 

[Hilljackoutlaw]

I kind of got the impression that there eating what they can to survive, giving where he lived. But I don't know...


Maybe you could Bar-B-Que one up and let us know if it's worth trying. Might be a delicacy.

Lol...I'll pass on that.

 

[44hunter45]

I've wondered if anyone has even gotten psittacosis from grouse or turkeys.

After 8 seasons of House M.D. you can become a complete hypochondriac.

 

[3855WIN]

I’ve heard that you need to use protection when dealing with cougars.

 

[stealthy_bowman]

I've wondered if anyone has even gotten psittacosis from grouse or turkeys.

After 8 seasons of House M.D. you can become a complete hypochondriac.

No, but I did get some nasty turkey lice on me once from a big old New York State gobbler. Also fleas from early season bunnies.