Man treated for rabies after field dressing infected deer

A Pennsylvania man was treated for rabies after exposure from an infected deer he had shot and field dressed.
A few important points:
Hunters should avoid field dressing deer that look abnormal or that had acted abnormally (including hides with large or multiple lesions, internal organs with abscesses or that are foul smelling, or an animal that has exhibited unusual behavior, such as this case where the animal is growling.) In most all cases, the hunter should still take down the animal and then contact the Game Commission.
Always wear latex gloves when field dressing a deer, being sure to keep fluids from contracting your own skin.  (That includes refraining from spreading blood on your face as you pretend to be the Great Hunter.)
A little more on rabies from the CDC:

Rabies is a preventable viral disease of mammals most often transmitted through the bite of a rabid animal. The vast majority of rabies cases reported to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) each year occur in wild animals like raccoons, skunks, bats, and foxes.

The rabies virus infects the central nervous system, ultimately causing disease in the brain and death. The early symptoms of rabies in people are similar to that of many other illnesses, including fever, headache, and general weakness or discomfort. As the disease progresses, more specific symptoms appear and may include insomnia, anxiety, confusion, slight or partial paralysis, excitation, hallucinations, agitation, hypersalivation (increase in saliva), difficulty swallowing, and hydrophobia (fear of water). Death usually occurs within days of the onset of these symptoms
People usually get rabies from the bite of a rabid animal. It is also possible, but quite rare, that people may get rabies if infectious material from a rabid animal, such as saliva, gets directly into their eyes, nose, mouth, or a wound.
Scratches, abrasions, open wounds, or mucous membranes contaminated with saliva or other potentially infectious material (such as brain tissue) from a rabid animal constitute non-bite exposures. Occasionally reports of non-bite exposure are such that postexposure prophylaxis is given.

Hunters risk run-in with rabieshttp://www.poconorecord.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20120203/NEWS/202030348/-1/NEWS01

Deer confirmed as E. coli source in Oregon Strawberry Outbreak

Deer dropping are the reported source of E.coli that contaminated strawberries.  For those who deal with fresh, ready-to-eat fruit and vegetables, this case puts additional pressure on addressing the movement of wild animals onto agricultural fields.

Deer confirmed as E. coli source in Oregon

http://www.thepacker.com/fruit-vegetable-enewsletter/packer-daily/Deer-confirmed-as-E-coli-source-in-Oregon-127966683.html

08/17/2011 4:24:36 PM  The Packer
Coral Beach

State officials announced test results that confirmed deer as the source of E. coli O157:H7 that contaminated fresh strawberries in Oregon, causing one death and making at least 14 other people sick in July.

Oregon’s Public Health epidemiologist Katrina Hedberg reported the results in a news release Aug. 17. Six samples positively matched the E. coli that was found in the people who were infected, Hedberg stated in the release.

More than 100 samples were taken Aug. 6 from five fields where the berries were grown at Jaquith Strawberry Farm in Newberg, Ore. Those samples included deer droppings, soil and strawberry plants. Growers Joe and Jerri Jaquith have been cooperating with state officials, who have said that no sub-standard or problematic conditions were found when the farm was inspected.

Oregon health and agriculture officials remain concerned that some of the strawberries may remain in consumers’ hands. They repeated warnings Aug. 17 that uncooked strawberries used for “freezer jam” or frozen for later use should be thrown out. The strawberries were sold at roadside stands and farmers markets. Harvest at the farm ceased July 29.

“At this time, the Oregon Department of Agriculture believes it has identified those operators and locations that possibly sold Jaquith strawberries,” Hedberg stated in the Aug. 17 release. A list of the 57 locations and 36 vendors is on the department website.

This outbreak, which sickened people from July 10-29, marks the second time in Oregon that E. coli O157:H7 carried by deer has been implicated in human illness.

The bacteria is most often associated with beef and dairy products, but in 1997 Oregon epidemiologist William Keene confirmed that venison jerky was contaminated with the pathogen. Since that time, E. coli has also been confirmed in wild elk.