Originally Posted By: devildoggRecreational deer feeding will not cause cwd only when you hunt over it that is when they will catch cwd.
???? All feeding, recreational or as bait, concentrates deer in one spot. This increases the chances for exchange of saliva and other body fluids and, in some cases, viruses, diseases, etc. Same thing happens under apple trees every year.
The most likely reason why you cannot bait in Pennsylvania is because it is considered unethical by the majority of sportsmen/sportsmens groups in the state (Although there are areas in the southeast where I think baiting is legal). I guess I'd ask why can't you hunt deer on Sundays there either? Or how about your primitive flintlock season? I think most of the northeast states do not allow baiting.
"Feeding" deer is much more accepted by the general public because it increases their sightings of deer and/or they feel they are helping the deer survive through the winter. Probably many more people feeding deer and probably a bigger problem when it comes to spreading diseases, but it's likely too popular to outlaw it.