Deer Test Positive for CWD

According to the Montana Fish and Wildlife Service, the most recent big batch of test results from animals harvested during the Montana hunting season have turned up 16 new positives for Chronic Wasting Disease. Although the positives were mostly in areas where the disease is already known to exist, there was a first time hunt area in the southeast portion of the state that had a deer with CWD. Most of the southeastern portion of Montana that borders Wyoming is either a CWD management zone or was a priority sampling area in 2019. 

More than 7,000 animals have been sampled statewide and 131 tested positive. CWD is a fatal disease that can affect the nervous system of deer, elk, and moose. Transmission can most commonly occur through direct contact between animals bodily fluids or antler velvet. Wyoming has had animals test positive for CWD as well since 1985. It is now found across the majority of the state according to the Wyoming Game and Fish Department.