In Depth with Dan Haggerty mailbag

From viewer criticisms to deadly bugs, Dan Haggerty answered questions from the In Depth mailbag.
Posted 9/29/2025, 11:42:59 PM Updated 9/30/2025, 12:00:07 AM

ROOM.

>> HEY, ALL RIGHT. THE IN-DEPTH

MAILBAG IS BACK ON THIS MONDAY

EVENING. WE GOT SO MANY

MESSAGES OVER THE PAST FEW

WEEKS TALKING ABOUT EVERYTHING

FROM GARBAGE TO LATE NIGHT TV.

SOME OF YOU SEEM TO THINK THOSE

THINGS ARE ONE IN THE SAME.

LONNIE SEEMS TO THINK THAT I

AM GARBAGE. LONNIE WROTE YOUR

SARCASTIC WAY OF DELIVERING

THE NEWS STAKES. LISTEN,

LONNIE. I GET IT. ALL RIGHT.

THE WAY WE DO THINGS HERE AT

7 O'CLOCK, IT'S NOT FOR

EVERYBODY. AND I CAN RESPECT

THAT SAID IT DOES SOUND LIKE A

LOT OF PEOPLE ARE BECOMING

FANS. ROB SAID THANK YOU FOR

DOING MORE THAN JUST READING

A TELEPROMPTER. AND NICK SAID

I'VE BEEN AGREEING WITH YOU

SINCE FOREVER. NOW, LOOK, NICK,

IT'S NICE THAT YOU AND I AGREE

ON A BUNCH OF STUFF. BUT BUT

THE SEGMENT ISN'T REALLY ABOUT

AGREEING OR DISAGREEING OR

ANYTHING LIKE THAT. IT'S ABOUT

CHALLENGING OUR VIEWS, RIGHT,

ALLOWING CURIOSITY AND SOME NEW

INFORMATION TO HELP YOU SEE THE

WORLD THROUGH. MAYBE A

DIFFERENT PERSPECTIVE. AND WITH

THAT SAID, LET'S GO TO A

QUESTION FROM A VIEWER NAMED

BILLY BOB. HE SAID WHY ARE

KISSING BUGS? COMING UP, ALL OF

A SUDDEN SHE REALLY DEADLY AND

SCARY. SO MAYBE YOU'VE HEARD

ABOUT THESE THINGS, SEE THEM ON

SOCIAL MEDIA ON YOUR FEEDS.

THIS THIS IS A KISSING BUG OR

BY ITS FULL NAME. THE EASTERN

BLOODSUCKING CONE NOSE. IT'S

ABOUT THE SIZE OF A PENNY.

A LITTLE BIGGER AND IT'S TRUE.

THESE THESE GUYS CAN BE DEADLY

AND THEREFORE SCARY. THEY CAN

TRANSMIT THE DISEASE WITH

SYMPTOMS THAT RANGE FROM FEVER

TO AN ENLARGED HEART TO DEATH.

SO, YEAH, SCARY NOW, IF YOU

MIGHT THANK, YOU KNOW WHERE I'M

GOING WITH THIS, THAT IT'S A

KISSING BUG TRANSMITTED

DISEASE. OBVIOUSLY THE BUGS DO

THIS BY BITING YOU, BUT YOU

WOULD BE RAUL. YES, KISSING

BUGS. DO BITE. THAT'S HOW THEY

EAT. THEY THEY DRINK BLOOD,

BUT THEIR BITE DOESN'T TRANSMIT

THE DISEASE. THERE. THEIR

POOPED US. YES, TALK SICK,

POTENTIALLY DEADLY BUG. POPE

THE DISEASE IN THE DOOKY IS

CALLED CHAGAS DISEASE. IT'S A

HUGE PROBLEM IN CENTRAL AND

SOUTH AMERICA. AN ESTIMATED

10,000 PEOPLE DIE FROM CHAGAS

DISEASE EVERY YEAR. AND EARLIER

THIS MONTH, THE CDC DECLARED

THE DISEASE AND AND DEMICK IN

THE UNITED STATES, WHICH

BASICALLY MEANS THAT IT OCCURS

REGULARLY.

NOW THE THING IS ONLY A HANDFUL

OF STATES HAVE EVER EVEN

CONFIRMED A SINGLE CASE IN

PEOPLE HERE. HERE'S THE MAP.

29 CASES BETWEEN 2020 18 AND

YOU'LL NOTICE THAT NOT ONE OF

THEM TOOK PLACE IN NORTH

CAROLINA. NOW, THERE ARE A LOT

OF CHAGAS CASES NOT IN PEOPLE,

BUT IN ANIMALS. WHY IS THAT?

WELL, BACK TO THE BUG TO YOU

SEE KISSING BUGS, ONLY COME OUT

AT NIGHT AND THEN THEY HANG

OUT IN THE WOODS. TYPICALLY

NEAR REC ROOM RAT OR POSSUM

HABITAT. THEY FEED ON THOSE

ANIMALS AND, YOU KNOW, AFTER

THEY DO THAT NATURE TAKES ITS

COURSE AND SINCE THE BUGS LIVE

WITH THE ANIMALS LIVE,

SOMETIMES THAT POPE GETS ONTO

THE ANIMALS IN THOSE ANIMALS

AND CAST CHAGAS DISEASE.

I KNOW I'M SAYING COOP A LOT.

ALL RIGHT. JUST BEAR WITH ME.

THAT EXPLAINS WHY THE DISEASE

KIND OF RARELY POPS UP IN

PEOPLE IN THE UNITED STATES.

MOST PEOPLE AREN'T HANGING OUT

NEAR AT HABITAT, BUT WHY ARE

PEOPLE IN CENTRAL AND SOUTH

AMERICA THEN DYING FROM THIS

DISEASE? IT GOES BACK AGAIN TO

THE BUG HOOP THE TYPE OF

KISSING BUGS THAT LIVE IN THAT

PART OF THE WORLD. THEY GO TO

THE BATHROOM WHILE THEY EAT?

YES, THESE BOOKS ARE DEADLY,

SCARY AND SUPER GROSS WHEN THE

BUG BITES PEOPLE, PEOPLE THEN

SCRATCH THAT BITE. THE FECES

GETS ON THEIR FINGERS AND THEN

YOU KNOW WHAT HAPPENS NEXT?

WE TOUCH STUFF AND WE RISE AND

ALL THAT SORT OF THING. NOW I

HEARD FROM AN ENTOMOLOGIST AT

NC STATE. HE SAYS THIS IS WHY

IF YOU EVER DO SEE A KISSING

BUG NOT TO SMASH IT.

>> CERTAINLY DON'T WANT TO

SMASH ONE BECAUSE THEN YOU THEN

YOU'RE POTENTIALLY SPREADING

PATHOGEN AROUND THE MORE

INTACT. YOU CAN KEEP IT LESS

HANDLING IT. THE BUT YOU CAN

DO BETTER. I'VE BEEN A

PROFESSIONAL ALL OF THIS FOR A

NORTH CAROLINA FOR 29 YEARS.

AND I'VE SEEN 3 OF THEM.

AND ALL OF THEM WERE IN INSECT

TRAPS.

>> ALL RIGHT. WELL, THAT'S KIND

OF REASSURING TO ANYTHING NOT

TELL TALE SIGN IF YOU'RE STILL

WORRIED ABOUT THIS OF THIS

CHAGAS DISEASE IS SWELLING IN

THE EYE, FOLLOWED BY FEVER AND

VOMITING. BUT IF PEOPLE IN THE

UNITED STATES ARE GETTING THIS

DISEASE, IF IT'S SO RARE, THEN

WHY DID THE CDC DECLARED THIS

PANDEMIC HERE IN OUR COUNTRY?

WILL THE REPORT FROM EARLIER

THIS MONTH SAYS, QUOTE, THIS IS

TO HELP REFORM CURRICULUM AND

PROFESSIONAL SCHOOLS TO ENABLE

THE NEXT GENERATION OF

PRACTITIONERS TO BE COMPETENT

IN RECOGNIZING THE LOW. BUT

PRESENT RISK. SO BASICALLY IT'S

TO SPREAD AWARENESS, RIGHT TO

PUT TO PREPARE JUST IN CASE THE

RISK EVER DOES INCREASE TO

SOMETHING THAT YOU SHOULD BE

MORE WORRIED ABOUT. BUT FOR

NOW, WE'RE TOLD YOU'VE GOT

NOTHING TO WORRY ABOUT. DON'T

GET STRESSED. THAT'S GONNA DO

IT FOR TONIGHT'S IN-DEPTH

MAILBAG. DID YOU LEARN

SOMETHING OR YOU GROSSED OUT?

MAYBE LONNIE WAS. I WAS ON TO

SOMETHING. MAYBE THE SEGMENT

DOES STINK. GOT ANYTHING ELSE

YOU WANT TO LOOK INTO WILL DO

IT. SEMI MAILED AND WRAL COM.

WHAT STORIES DO YOU WANT TO SEE

US COVER HERE ON THE NEWS?

CLEARLY NOT MUCH IS OFF THE