Hoof Disease in Western Elk

In the mid-1990’s, animals in Washington’s elk herd began to exhibit some concerning signs of disease. Severe lesions and injuries to the hoof caused affected elk pain and difficulty walking, even leading to lameness. 

While livestock can become infected with similar diseases of the hoof, this was an emerging disease in elk and there were many unknowns when the first cases began to appear in wild populations. Now that the disease has been present on the landscape for some time, researchers have had the opportunity to study its possible causes and risk factors, but there is lots of ongoing research into management of the disease. 

History

Elk exhibiting signs of treponeme associated hoof disease (TAHD) were first observed in Washington in the 1990s. The disease prevalence stayed at a fairly low level until 2008, when there was an uptick in cases in the Willapa Hills herd of elk located in southwestern Washington. The population density of this herd was high, and animals were also found to be deficient in nutrients such as copper and selenium. These factors may have had an influence on the rapid rise of infected elk seen in 2008 and the following years. 

While the exact mode of transmission of TAHD is still mostly unknown, the disease began to spread throughout Washington and infected populations can now be found in Oregon, Idaho and California as well. 

Signs and Disease Progression

Elk infected with TAHD initially develop lesions in the form of ulcers around the coronary band (where the hoof meets the hair), the interdigital area (between the toes) or other parts of the hoof. As the disease progresses over time, hoof tissue ulceration becomes more severe and can rot, developing deformities in the hoof.

The capsule, or outer part of the hoof, becomes overgrown and the tissue rot can become so severe that holes in the hoof tissue develop. In the most severe cases, the rotted and deformed hoof tissue can break off altogether, leading to lameness and poor body condition. There is very limited recovery after an infection this severe. 

Clinical signs of TAHD in elk hooves. Photo courtesy of Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife.

Cause

Histology and molecular techniques showed a constant among TAHD-infected hoof samples: a genus of spirochete bacteria called Treponema, or treponemes. There are similar hoof diseases, like digital dermatitis, that affect livestock like dairy cattle, and are treated with antibiotics and foot baths. Unfortunately, convincing a herd of wild elk to take a foot bath isn’t as easy as one might think. 

In addition to the treponemes, tests show a whole community of other microbial organisms: aerobic and anaerobic bacteria. These bacteria likely play an important role in the TAHD infection process, too. However, the treponemes are a constant in diseased hoof samples, earning their spot on the disease name acronym. 

Risk Factors

A combination of risk factors can influence disease dynamics within elk populations. These include the nutritional status of elk, population density, body condition, moisture, habitat and soil conditions, as well as the types of microbial communities soil can support. 

Like other wildlife diseases such as CWD, often TAHD itself does not kill an animal, but it does compromise its behavior and body condition enough to make it more susceptible to other forms of mortality like predation or starvation. So far, no other wild species have been found to be susceptible to the disease. 

Management

Infected elk walking on suitable soil types and depositing bacteria for other elk to come into contact with is likely a main mode of disease transmission. While the current available treatments are not feasible to use when treating a wild population, wildlife agencies encourage hunters who harvest infected elk to leave the hooves on the landscape to avoid spreading infected tissue to other parts of the state. Some state wildlife management agencies are even encouraging hunters to target infected animals to intentionally remove them from the landscape and reduce the amount of bacteria that is shed onto the soil. If you do harvest an elk with signs of TAHD, consider submitting photos or information to the state wildlife agency as an important data point. 

Treponeme associated hoof disease is still a new and emerging wildlife disease in the western United States, and lots of research is being conducted on both captive and wild elk to better understand it and hopefully develop management tools for the future. 

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