Release Date: December 10, 2018
Media Contacts:
Leeann Duwe, Public Information Officer, (608) 224-5005
Bill Cosh, Communications Director, (608) 224-5020
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MADISON – Based on test results from the National Veterinary Services Laboratory, the Wisconsin Department of Agriculture, Trade and Consumer Protection (DATCP) confirms that 11 additional animals from a deer farm in Washington County tested positive for chronic wasting disease (CWD). On November 15, a team comprised of DATCP and U.S. Department of Agriculture-Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service staff coordinated the humane depopulation of the farm's remaining whitetail deer and elk.
Since the farm's quarantine in March, CWD testing was completed for 44 white-tailed deer and 16 elk. The deer farm owner will receive a state indemnity payment after verification of completing cleaning and disinfecting requirements. State law provides for the authority for an indemnity payment to a livestock owner for animals condemned due to a contagious or infectious disease.
CWD is a fatal disease of deer, elk, and moose caused by an infectious protein called a prion that affects the animal's brain. Testing for CWD can only be performed after the animal's death. For more information about CWD visit DATCP's website. DATCP regulates deer farms for registration, recordkeeping, disease testing, movement, and permit requirements. To learn more about deer farm regulations in Wisconsin, visit DATCP's farm-raised deer program. The Department of Natural Resources also provides resources for CWD and monitors the state's wild white-tailed deer for CWD.
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