Infected Mule Deer Meat; White Cysts

[RBooth]

Hey Everyone,

I shot a Mule Deer buck on Monday and my buddies and I cut it up last night. When packaging the meat I noticed white 'cysts' in some of the hind quarter cuts. I haven't been able to find them anywhere else. So far I've found 4. They're about the size of a pin head or a small tomatoe seed (one you would find in a tiny tomatoe). They are also soft and just have some white, fairly firm substance inside of them.

I haven't been able to find the information I've been looking for so I appologize if this was already covered in a thread but hopefuly someone can point me in the right direction!

I'm guessing the meat is fine if cooked well done but I don't eat steaks anywhere near that, I'm a medium rare lover. I'm wondering if I should be grinding this entire deer and making sausage and burger?

Thanks everyone.

[Nait Hadya]

tapeworm....

[ufishifish2]

I remember finding that in a deer I shot once many moons ago. I took the few that I did find out of the meat.
I don't know that I got them all out.
Years later I am still fine.............................. I think!!!!

[pg83]

We had those in a moose about ten years back. Took it in for inspection and I believe the verdict was tapeworm related. We were told to cook the meat well and we wouldn't have any issues. Had roasts and steaks and all was well.

[twoSevenO]

just throw it out dude ... how desperate are you for food that you're willing to eat something that is obviously not healthy ... jeez.

[dime]

DO NOT THROW IT OUT! What a moronic statement! The cysts are a parasite that are not contagious to humans. They are the larval form of a tapeworm that will only infect dogs and wolves.
Here is a website that describes the issue:
http://www.env.gov.bc.ca/wld/wldhealth/diseases/specificdiseases/moose_measles.htm
If you shoot a deer or moose in an area that wolves are prevalent there is a chance that you will see this. I shot a moose in 5-02D in 2006 and it had about 20 of them, I looked it up, contacted the COs and was assured that it represented no threat to humans. DO NOT WASTE GOOD MEAT BECAUSE OF MORONS!
I eat all my steaks medium rare, hunted for 25 years and never had a problem.

[whitetail2009]

Freezing and cooking the meat at normal temperature will kill them, meat will be fine.

[doubled]

Fairly normal, seen it numerous times. It has been said before, freeze and cook, no problems.

[moosecaller]

Taenia krabbei
Not harmful to humans normal find in most ungulates.

[Marlin375]

Noticed a few in the hams of my Son's moose this year and have seen them before (like a 1 or 2mm white pearl) Freeze and Eat as normal.

[winchester284]

just throw it out dude ... how desperate are you for food that you're willing to eat something that is obviously not healthy ... jeez.

Great advice!

Then go out and buy some hormone injected, antibiotic fed, mass produced, nicely package meat from your local supermarket. You'll feel much better after eating healthy stuff like that!

[Doc Sprat]

Same thing in my mule deer, in 4-23. Any pics?

[mbway]

Had them in my moose and mule deer this season. WE always called the meesles. seen them lots in Moose a few times in deer. No threat to humans.

[Morel]

DO NOT THROW IT OUT! What a moronic statement! The cysts are a parasite that are not contagious to humans. They are the larval form of a tapeworm that will only infect dogs and wolves.
Here is a website that describes the issue:
http://www.env.gov.bc.ca/wld/wldhealth/diseases/specificdiseases/moose_measles.htm
If you shoot a deer or moose in an area that wolves are prevalent there is a chance that you will see this. I shot a moose in 5-02D in 2006 and it had about 20 of them, I looked it up, contacted the COs and was assured that it represented no threat to humans. DO NOT WASTE GOOD MEAT BECAUSE OF MORONS!
I eat all my steaks medium rare, hunted for 25 years and never had a problem.

Thank you for the link.

[J_T]

I remember finding that in a deer I shot once many moons ago. I took the few that I did find out of the meat.
I don't know that I got them all out.
Years later I am still fine.............................. I think!!!! I'm not sure..... that avatar might contradict the "I am still fine" statement. I could however use a tapeworm... RB, perhaps you could market the meat as a dietary aid to the atkins diet. The meat that keeps on eating.

[Jagermeister]

The quickest way to throw your wife off game meat is to try to feed her meat loaded with cysts.
You will find you are dining alone.

[mbway]

The quickest way to throw your wife off game meat is to try to feed her meat loaded with cysts.
You will find you are dining alone.

thats why you remove the ones you find and keep it to yourself .

[dime]

I should add that at no time did I ever mention that these parasites exist to any member of my family. Everybody remained happy and we ate every ounce of the moose.http://www.huntingbc.ca/photos/data/500/medium/PB080050_Large_.JPG (javascript:;)

[cameron0518]

All depends on personal preference and taste. Personally wouldn't touch it but eating tapeworm cysts seems something maybe for the new fear factor show coming soon. I would look to see if any wildlife sanctuaries would be interested. I also would not feel comfortable hiding that from anybody eating at my house. Everyones beliefs are different and should always be respected even if you do not agree with them when it comes to eating game meat.

[Marlin375]

In my opinion, eating the larval cysts is realy no different than eating a chicken egg....it is not a chicken. The cyst is not a tapeworm. It gets cooked like an egg, it gets eaten like an egg, no big deal. I am sure there are far stranger things getting consumed by unknowing hamburger lovers everyday.

[pro 111]

I agree , at the end of the day the deer doesn't care he is already dead. I had a moose from the peace country before that had them . Chucked the whole thing. Theres nothing worse than second guessing what your eating . These things happen .
just throw it out dude ... how desperate are you for food that you're willing to eat something that is obviously not healthy ... jeez.

[walks with deer]

Wow!

Hope the co reads this thread waste disgust me.
If you are harvesting any animal they can contain a parisite of one kind or another.
From salmon with sea lice on there gills,widgeon with those hug lice on them.
To deer with ticks and bears with worms clean your meat always until its spotless and eat it.

Or sell your firearms

[mrdoog]

Worried about a harmless little cyst; yet we've probably all chowed down on hotdogs, or enjoyed meals at restaurants with kitchens that are full of rat feces....

[Ridgeback Fan]

I've been finding and ignoring these in moose in 7:15 for about 20 years. I always freeze it first and then I cook it fairly well. I'm still fine. I've found as many as dozens and dozens to a few as one or two.

[jml11]

Pretty normal....most moose I've killed have had them and I saw one in the deer I butchered yesterday. They are not harmful to humans...

FYI to those of you who threw away your animal...every animal has some parasite or another...get used to it or like it was said, sell your guns!!

[835]

Eat it. have you ever eaten trout with them?? I have Have you ever gutted Salmon with a tonne of worms?
Man,

[jeff]

I agree , at the end of the day the deer doesn't care he is already dead. I had a moose from the peace country before that had them . Chucked the whole thing. Theres nothing worse than second guessing what your eating . These things happen .

seriously bud..throw away a moose ,are u kidding .. i think u should give up hunting with that attitude..what a waste ,just because your lack of knoledge..

[jeff]

take a salmon fillet or cod fillet and look real close .u will most likely find some .its perfectly normal and safe

[pro 111]

Before all you perfect world hunters out there start jumping on the bandwagon and talking about wasting an animal. I don't really give a rats ass. If this guys deer looked like my moose then in my opinion he should not eat it. My moose had one cyst about every 2 to 4 inches of meat. It was especially bad in the hind legs. These cysts were about 3/4 the size of a salmon egg and left a slimy pocket in the muscle when you flipped them out. They were like a small ball of puss. So I won't be selling my guns just yet sorry to dissapoint you all. Next time I get one of these moose though I will remember all you perfect hunters and you guys can have it. Good luck with the rest of the season.
seriously bud..throw away a moose ,are u kidding .. i think u should give up hunting with that attitude..what a waste ,just because your lack of knoledge..

[Ubertuber]

I suppose I could see thowing it away if you didn't know better, but to do so after knowing it's perfectly edible and safe is plain wrong and a waste.

I agree, sell your guns and go to Safeway.

[pro 111]

I suppose I could see thowing it away if you didn't know better, but to do so after knowing it's perfectly edible and safe is plain wrong and a waste.

I agree, sell your guns and go to Safeway.
Ok guys, sorry for making that mistake with the moose. I will put the collection up for sale tonight . Some pretty nice rifles going cheap!
PS , go **** yourselfs.

[keoke]

Ok guys, sorry for making that mistake with the moose. I will put the collection up for sale tonight . Some pretty nice rifles going cheap!
PS , go **** yourselfs.

I think I would chuck it too, or at least try to give it away as dog food. After you get it home you can do what ever you please with it.

[jeff]

i shot an elk on north island back in 96 .it had cysts every 2 to 3 inches apart ..looked kinda discusting ..but as we inquired about them ,and learned they were not an issue ,we had it butchered and it was awsome meat..if u were so concerned why not just cut off the whole outer layer then ..there not burrowers

[Doc Sprat]

http://www.srd.alberta.ca/fishwildlife/WildlifeDiseases/documents/WDTkrabbei.pdf

Theres some good info on this... Apparently they can't even host in a human, but can in dogs. Their dead anyways after freezing/cooking.

[J_T]

I believe the disease this animals is infected with Papillomas.

[BillBraskii]

I wouldn't eat anything that had cysts or puss pockets in it......gross
If it happened to me I would burn the carcass in the bush somewhere so nothing could eat it.

It's funny how all these guys tell you to eat up when they haven't even seen what these 'cysts' look like in real life,just going of a vague description on the internet.

How do you like your cancer??
rare or medium??:mrgreen:

[jeff]

I wouldn't eat anything that had cysts or puss pockets in it......gross
If it happened to me I would burn the carcass in the bush somewhere so nothing could eat it.

It's funny how all these guys tell you to eat up when they haven't even seen what these 'cysts' look like in real life,just going of a vague description on the internet.

How do you like your cancer??
rare or medium??:mrgreen:

bill,if your ever going to throw one away,get ahold of me .ill take it ... ive personally seen it ,and ate it .. DONT throw it out

[Brambles]

I've seen em in moose as well, I'm still alive and not suffering from any tapeworm.

[jml11]

I wouldn't eat anything that had cysts or puss pockets in it......gross
If it happened to me I would burn the carcass in the bush somewhere so nothing could eat it.

It's funny how all these guys tell you to eat up when they haven't even seen what these 'cysts' look like in real life,just going of a vague description on the internet.

How do you like your cancer??
rare or medium??

Lol now we are going to get cancer from eating wild meat....what IS good for us now-a-days??

Clearly you don't know your audience either...hmm I wonder what someone who has a degree in wildlife management and taken courses on animal diseases and parasites would say :confused::confused:....oh wait i do know :cool:. if you are an avid hunter or fisherman, I guarantee you have eaten cysts and been exposed to tapeworms already!! If you guys want to talk about animal parasites, let's start talking about ducks!! :mrgreen:

How many of you have touched wolf scat with your bare hands, even a light touch without thinking first or while skinning one out?? Or dissected a dried out pile-o-pooh with a stick??...news flash YOU might be dying already :shock:

[skibum]

Well if you have eaten cod, you have eaten worms. Same thing, not harmfull to humans, distastefully looking, yes

[Ubertuber]

Ok guys, sorry for making that mistake with the moose. I will put the collection up for sale tonight . Some pretty nice rifles going cheap!
PS , go **** yourselfs.
LOL, read what I said before you get your panties in a bunch. Throwing it out if you didn't know better is one thing, but doing so once you know the meat is perfectly edible is a waste. The Safeway comment was directed at guys that would throw out meat even if they know it's edible, not the ones that make a mistake like you did.

[835]

I wouldn't eat anything that had cysts or puss pockets in it......gross
If it happened to me I would burn the carcass in the bush somewhere so nothing could eat it.

It's funny how all these guys tell you to eat up when they haven't even seen what these 'cysts' look like in real life,just going of a vague description on the internet.

How do you like your cancer??
rare or medium??:mrgreen:

Im in such a bad mood right now its all i can to to control my fingers! :) Seriously,
How do you know what i have and havent seen or eaten. If you are going to burn and chuck the stuff like it was infected with the plague go to the grocery store and get your self some anti biotic fed beef. It is attitude like yours that got that damned cow shot full of that crap so stop hunting and go eat that.

[BillBraskii]

Im in such a bad mood right now its all i can to to control my fingers! :) Seriously,
How do you know what i have and havent seen or eaten. If you are going to burn and chuck the stuff like it was infected with the plague go to the grocery store and get your self some anti biotic fed beef. It is attitude like yours that got that damned cow shot full of that crap so stop hunting and go eat that.

My point was that the OP didnt even post a photo of the 'cysts'.
Without seeing them first hand how can anyone really say what they are telling him to eat??

[BillBraskii]

Lol now we are going to get cancer from eating wild meat....what IS good for us now-a-days??

Clearly you don't know your audience either...hmm I wonder what someone who has a degree in wildlife management and taken courses on animal diseases and parasites would say :confused::confused:....oh wait i do know :cool:. if you are an avid hunter or fisherman, I guarantee you have eaten cysts and been exposed to tapeworms already!! If you guys want to talk about animal parasites, let's start talking about ducks!! :mrgreen:

How many of you have touched wolf scat with your bare hands, even a light touch without thinking first or while skinning one out?? Or dissected a dried out pile-o-pooh with a stick??...news flash YOU might be dying already :shock:

I generally try to avoid playing with poo,especially that of a canine.

Just saying without seeing a photo or actually seeing the white lumps in question,how can anyone really know what they are telling him to eat??

[Doc Sprat]

Ask an expert. Wasting edible meat is illegal, why would taking it home make this any different? Definitely disgusting, but a pretty interesting relationship these tapeworms use to propagate, between predator and prey, .

[J_T]

Papillomas is a virus, transmitted by biting insects. Where there is one, there are probably more infected animals. The lumps are like warts and will go away in most cases after a few months.
As far as human consumption you cannot get it and are fine to eat it – as long as the animal looks healthy. Some of these masses can get large and infected – Probably best to avoid eating an animal where the lumps are large. The infection could make them sick but a lump or two has no effect on the general health of the deer.

[walks with deer]

pro111

I hope Karma bites you in the a## and your scope falls apart at the same time your truck breaks down and the co nails your a## for driveing down the road with the biggest set of antlers ever but know animal to go with it.

seriosly buddy if it was bad meat fine. if your uneducated fine again.

But keep your wasteful talk to your budys when you puff your chest out and brag about the moose with big antlers you shot but ditched the meat.

you must of had some majour std in the day to be so paranoid....

[walks with deer]

Rbooth

your question is totaly legit sorry for the negative side track some people dont respect the game they harvest.

99% of the time clean everything and anything on your meat and your fine it it was dragging around a hole in its but or looked really sick thats a different topic clean it up and enjoy. (good luck)

[john g]

All the guys who have said tapeworms are right on. The common name is moose measles, and they are found most frequently in the rear quarters. They will not infect humans if eaten, but they will survive and hatch inside of anything in the dog family. Cooking and freezing kills the cysts, and when you cook them they become invisible, so no one will notice and no harm done.

References: http://www.srd.alberta.ca/fishwildlife/WildlifeDiseases/documents/WDTkrabbei.pdf

http://www.env.gov.bc.ca/wld/documents/wldhealth/diseases_from_wildlife_safetymanual.pdf

[pro 111]

Maybe you should learn how to read before you start flapping your gums ,i was definatly not bragging , the moose was a spike in velvet and I found the cysts at home while butchering the thing. The last thing I wanted to do was get rid of it but I was disscusted by the site of the slimy little puss balls . Your obviously an idiot if you think you can tell someone else what they should do with there meat without even laying eyes on it. I have only shot 5 moose in my time , all were exellent except this one.
pro111

I hope Karma bites you in the a## and your scope falls apart at the same time your truck breaks down and the co nails your a## for driveing down the road with the biggest set of antlers ever but know animal to go with it.

seriosly buddy if it was bad meat fine. if your uneducated fine again.

But keep your wasteful talk to your budys when you puff your chest out and brag about the moose with big antlers you shot but ditched the meat.

you must of had some majour std in the day to be so paranoid....

[pro 111]

Come on you guys! Would you guys actually eat a TAPEWORM CYST. I know that wasting an animal is not a very nice feeling , but for real , hats of to all you carnivores out there that are hungry enough to eat a ****ing TAPEWORM EGG ! GROSS! Maybe we should start a new hunting BC reality show. Over in this bucket we have cooked bear meat riddled with tricni worms. Then over here we have elk liver with snails(flukes) inside of it. Its cooked though so it won't hurt you. Then over here we have moose steaks riddled with Tapeworm eggs!
I have shot hundreds of blacktails here in the Charlottes , Never wasted one and never found a parasite in there meat. Some have had papilloma but the deer were healthy. Shot one once that had been shot with an arrow.It had laid down in a swamp and actually had leaches inside its gut cavity. The deer was sour smelling so I guess I lied as I left this one there.
Just remember you can eat your own shit if you want , but it ain't going to go down smooth . Neither does a tapeworm egg in my opinion.

[cameron0518]

If i ever get so lucky to get a moose with cysts, i will cut them out for you all and let you cook them up. Seems like a lot of guys love eating them. BTW, there is a new Fear Factor show coming out. You tough eaters should try out for it.

[Marlin375]

The OP found 4 tiny pin head size cysts. If that is enough for you guys to waste an entire animal, you better let a butcher do your meat cutting.

[kidconcrete]

How many of you have touched wolf scat with your bare hands, even a light touch without thinking first or while skinning one out?? Or dissected a dried out pile-o-pooh with a stick??...news flash YOU might be dying already :shock:
http://anonym.to/?http://westinstenv.org/wildpeop/2010/01/10/two-thirds-of-idaho-wolf-carcasses-examined-have-thousands-of-hydatid-disease-tapeworms/
:shock:

[Doc Sprat]

damn nature you scary...

[walks with deer]

Pro111
Agered I did not see your moose, and I agree I am sure there is some game out there that is not suitable for regular table fair.
The issue here is how negative you talked about a mans animal with one or 2 parasites nobody said eat a tapeworm you missconcepting idiot.
The other hunter had a question and you emplied just chuck it.
If your moose was a spike bull in velvet I question your intellagiance too believe there is no good meat on it. Agreed I did not see it.
but I see your lack of respect for game.
I have harvest over 70 big game animals and seen just as many harvested that I was a share of, once I followed another guys wounded deer and finised it I tracked it down dispatched it and cut out the crap and made sausage.
I am far from hard up for meat I harvest many deer and typically a moose,elk or caribou every year and would definetly no eat a puss ball or worm.
I will not spend any more energy on this.
You need to get open your eyes or get your head checked princes.

End of story for me put a little more thought into things.

[dime]

I wouldn't eat anything that had cysts or puss pockets in it......gross
If it happened to me I would burn the carcass in the bush somewhere so nothing could eat it.

It's funny how all these guys tell you to eat up when they haven't even seen what these 'cysts' look like in real life,just going of a vague description on the internet.

How do you like your cancer??

rare or medium??:mrgreen:


Again, I have seen them in most every moose I have shot in both region 5 and 7. I have eaten every one of these animals, as have my family. THEY ARE NOT HARMFUL TO HUMANS, THIS IS NOT CANCER.
You make it sound like we have never seen them and never had to deal with them. Do not hunt in these areas if you are going to shoot a moose and leave it to rot, it is wasteful and illegal. Seriously, if you are advocating wasting an entire moose because of a few harmless cysts, you should take up knitting instead of hunting.

[BillBraskii]

Again, I have seen them in most every moose I have shot in both region 5 and 7. I have eaten every one of these animals, as have my family. THEY ARE NOT HARMFUL TO HUMANS, THIS IS NOT CANCER.
You make it sound like we have never seen them and never had to deal with them. Do not hunt in these areas if you are going to shoot a moose and leave it to rot, it is wasteful and illegal. Seriously, if you are advocating wasting an entire moose because of a few harmless cysts, you should take up knitting instead of hunting.
how do you know what they were??
did you see them yourself??
or even a picture???