“Johne’s disease”, so named after its German discoverer, Heindrich A. Johne in 1905, is a bacterial disease caused by Mycobacterium avium subsp. paratuberculosis (MAP). It has been found in many ruminant animals from deer to llamas and is a huge concern with regard to cow populations in the USA and abroad. The infection alters the animal’s intestine to the point where, despite being able to eat normally, the animal cannot properly absorb nutrients from the food, and ultimately, slowly dies of malnutrition and dehydration. At this time, there is no cure. Unfortunately, MAP was found to exist in the Key Deer population in 1996. Despite an apparent decrease in incidence after Hurricane Irma, the disease may continue to exist in the Keys today.  To monitor MAP’s location and prevalence trends, SOKD collects fecal samples on private property from deer reported to them by residents as having potential clinical signs of MAP, submits (and pays for) the samples for MAP testing, and informs US Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) Refuge management of any positive results. Since Hurricane Irma, SOKD has had only one positive test result in early 2020 (the middle-aged buck had to be euthanized), raising hope that Johne’s may be disappearing from the Keys. Back