Department of Agriculture, Trade and Consumer Protection

​Release Date: May 10, 2019                 

Contact: Leeann Duwe, Public Information Officer, (608) 224-5005

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MADISON – The Wisconsin Department of Agriculture, Trade and Consumer Protection (DATCP) confirms that a Portage County deer farm that tested positive for chronic wasting disease (CWD) in November 2018, was depopulated on May 1. Samples were taken from the remaining 30 deer and submitted to the National Veterinary Services Laboratory for CWD testing. Of the 30 deer, six animals tested positive for CWD.

With the deer farm testing positive for CWD previously, the​ new positives will not change the approach for how the 11-acre property must be managed now that all of the deer are gone. The owner must clean the property, maintain fencing, and will not be able to have any deer on the property for five years. After cleaning and disinfection are verified, the owner will receive compensation for the animals from the U.S. Department of Agriculture as part of its disease control effort for animals exposed to disease.

More information about Wisconsin's farm-raised deer program is available at https://datcp.wi.gov/Pages/Programs_Services/FarmRaisedDeer.aspx.

CWD is a fatal, neurological 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. More information about CWD is available at https://datcp.wi.gov/Pages/Programs_Services/ChronicWastingDisease.aspx. DATCP regulates deer farms for registration, recordkeeping, disease testing, movement, and permit requirements. The Department of Natural Resources monitors the state's wild white-tailed deer for CWD and has resources available at https://dnr.wi.gov/topic/wildlifehabitat/regulations.html.

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