Utah wildlife biologists are asking deer hunters to visit check stations this fall to test harvested animals for chronic wasting disease. With 435 mule deer and 11 elk having tested positive for the disease in Utah, officials are conducting monitoring to better track the disease and maintain healthy deer populations in the state.
Chronic wasting disease has touched 37 states, turning what was once a localized wildlife mystery into a nationwide challenge for resource managers. First recognized in captive deer in Colorado in 1967, the fatal neurological condition spreads through misfolded proteins known as prions. These resilient particles accumulate in the brain and spinal cord, causing affected animals to grow emaciated, stumble, drool excessively, and ultimately die. Because infected deer can shed prions into soil, water, and vegetation for years through saliva, urine, and feces, the disease is extraordinarily difficult to eliminate once established in an area.
The Utah Division of Wildlife Resources conducts check stations each fall during buck deer hunts to test harvested deer in specific hunting units. Chronic wasting disease is a transmissible disease that affects the nervous systems of deer, elk, and moose. This fatal illness can spread through deer populations as a misfolded protein called a prion accumulates in an infected animal’s brain and spinal cord. Infected animals may develop brain lesions, become emaciated, appear listless, have droopy ears, salivate excessively, and will eventually die.
Because animals in the initial phases of chronic wasting disease frequently look completely well—even those that hunters might bag—getting a laboratory test is the sole definitive method to determine if your deer is carrying the infection. Infected animals may shed prions in their urine, feces, and saliva even when they are not showing symptoms. Transmission may occur directly through contact with an infected animal or indirectly through environmental contamination, as a dead carcass can contaminate the soil. Prions are extremely resilient in the environment and can stay infectious for many years.
Where Utah Wildlife Officers Are Operating Check Stations
The Utah Division of Wildlife Resources rotates its monitoring checkpoints across state hunting units on a five-year schedule. This autumn, biologists are asking hunters to stop by designated check stations to submit tissue samples from animals harvested in targeted sampling units. DWR staff members routinely stop by regional meat-processing facilities where they gather chronic wasting disease samples from deer taken on both the Manti and San Juan units. The DWR Price office (by appointment only) is at 319 N. Carbonville Road, Suite A. Call 435-613-3700 to schedule an appointment.
Hunters passing through Cache Valley this autumn will have a local chance to assist Utah wildlife authorities in tracking chronic wasting disease, as the Utah Division of Wildlife Resources runs a check point near the entrance of Blacksmith Fork Canyon. The DWR announced that it will operate the station along Highway 101 in Hyrum on Oct. 17 and 18, from about 9 a.m. until dusk. State biologists gather tissues from successful harvests as part of the agency’s ongoing monitoring efforts for chronic wasting disease. Deer taken from the Ogden, Morgan-South Rich, East Canyon, and Kamas hunting units—which form part of this year’s targeted surveillance zones—are eligible for complimentary screening at the Hyrum facility.
At check stations, biologists remove lymph nodes for testing. Hunters should leave about 6 inches of the animal’s neck and windpipe attached below the jaw and should be prepared to tell DWR employees where the animal was harvested. The entire process will only take a few minutes.
Ginger Stout, DWR State Wildlife Veterinarian
Sampling Rules and Laboratory Fees Across Utah Units
As of Feb., 435 mule deer and 11 elk had tested positive for CWD in 23 Utah, according to the DWR. The disease has been detected in several parts of the state, with most Utah cases occurring in northeastern and southeastern areas.
Public Health Guidance and Carcass Disposal Practices
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention rates the likelihood of chronic wasting disease passing from wildlife to people as exceptionally minimal, though it advises against consuming meat from any specimen that registers positive for CWD. Do not dump carcasses outdoors away from where the animal was harvested. When dressing a deer in the field, sportsmen ought to leave the spinal column and other refuse right at the kill site. When processing a harvest at another location, dispose of leftover scraps inside secured garbage bags sent straight to a municipal landfill or standard trash rather than discarding them outdoors.
We take the presence of CWD in Utah seriously and will continue to do extensive monitoring to stay on top of the disease and its prevalence in the state.
Ginger Stout, DWR State Wildlife Veterinarian