MISSOURI, USA — An always fatal disease is spreading throughout Missouri's deer population.
Chronic Wasting Disease has been documented in numerous Missouri counties and over 30 states, according to the Missouri Department of Conservation. The disease is not caused by a virus or bacteria, but rather by a naturally occurring protein that damages a deer's nervous system.
The name of the disease can be a bit of a misnomer. Deer with CWD aren't zombie-like in appearance, looking emaciated and showing erratic behavior, until the late stages of the disease, the Chronic Wasting Disease Alliance's website said. Instead, CWD-infected deer can appear otherwise healthy for around two years before succumbing to the disease.
The healthy-looking appearance of infected deer is why MDC urges hunters who harvest deer in certain Missouri counties to test their kill so infected carcasses can't spread the disease to other counties. The counties, known as CWD Management Zones, have additional regulations hunters must follow to stop the spread of the disease, including mandatory testing and carcass movement restrictions. CWD has not been shown to affect humans, but the CDC recommends against consuming meat from a CWD-positive deer.
Hunters in CWD Management Zones are required to bring in their kills to a designated CWD Management Zone during the first two opening days of the November firearms portion of deer season, Nov. 11 and 12. After those dates, testing is voluntary.
"During the 2 days of Mandatory Sampling, hunters should bring their deer to a CWD sampling station and make sure it is easily accessible to MDC staff, who will remove 2 lymph nodes for the deer’s neck," the department told 5 On Your Side. "Alternatively, hunters may bring the head only with at least 6 inches of neck still intact."
Franklin, Howell and Ripley counties, the counties with the highest number of Missouri deer kills in the early hunting season, are each a CWD Management Zone. Nearly every other county near St. Louis is also a designated CWD Management Zone, including:
- St. Charles County
- Jefferson County
- Ste. Genevieve County
- Perry County
- St. Francois County
- Washington county
- Madison County
- Bollinger County
- Crawford County
- Gasconade County
- Montgomery County
In 2022, less than 1% of hunter-killed deer in Missouri tested positive for CWD. MDC said that is a testament to its ability to find the disease early and slow its spread.
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