Code of Maine Rules
01 - DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE, CONSERVATION AND FORESTRY
001 - MAINE MILK COMMISSION
Chapter 204 - RULE FOR THE LICENSING REQUIREMENTS FOR FARMED CERVIDS
Section 001-204-7 - RECOVERY OR DISPOSITION OF ESCAPED CERVIDS

A. The license holder shall report any escaped cervids to the Department within 24-hours of the known escape. The license holder shall be responsible for monitoring the movement of the escaped cervids and for recovering the cervids as authorized by the Department. If a cervid has been at large for longer than 72 hours, but has been returned to the owner's premises alive, the escaped cervid must be identified and tested for CWD when it ultimately dies.

B. The Department may euthanize any captured cervid that is relinquished to the Department by its owner, if known, for thepurpose of diagnostic testing for the presence of CWD. The Department may, in accordance with 7 M.R.S.A. §1802, condemn any captured cervid that is suspected of being infected with, or exposed to, CWD, and order that cervid euthanized for the purpose of diagnostic testing.

In the event that capture of the escaped cervid is not practical, the Department will consult with the owner, if known, to determine whether the owner will relinquish the cervid to the Department. If the owner agrees to relinquish the cervid, or if the owner does not agree but the commissioner of the Department condemns the cervid in accordance with 7 M.R.S.A. §1802, the representatives of the Department, with cooperation from the representatives of the Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife, may destroy the escaped cervid, and samples may be taken for the purpose of diagnostic testing. The license holder shall be responsible for reasonable and appropriate costs associated with the capture, euthanasia, or destruction of escaped cervids.