The Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries (LDWF) has announced the first case of chronic wasting disease (CWD) in a wild deer in Concordia Parish.
Concordia Parish is in east-central Louisiana, on the Mississippi River. The infected buck was taken by a hunter in the Richard K. Yancey Wildlife Management Area, LDWF said this week. The department said that it is implementing its CWD response plan.
“We will continue to count on our hunters, property owners, deer processors and taxidermists for their assistance in monitoring CWD as their continued partnership with our department will help manage the expanse of CWD in the state keeping our deer population healthy,’’ LDWF Secretary Tyler Bosworth, JD, said in the news release.
Free CWD testing of hunter-harvested deer
Since CWD was first found in Louisiana in 2022, the state has tallied 49 positive cases. CWD is a neurodegenerative disease of cervids such as deer, moose, and elk. It spreads from animal to animal and via environmental contamination through infectious misfolded proteins called prions. It causes symptoms such as emaciation, excessive salivation and thirst, lack of coordination, loss of fear of humans, and eventually, death.
It is recommended that people hunting in areas known to harbor CWD-infected deer have their deer tested for the disease prior to consumption.
"Although CWD has not been shown to be contagious to humans, the Centers for Disease Control and the World Health Organization recommend against the human consumption of deer known to be infected with CWD,” LDWF said.
“Also, it is recommended that people hunting in areas known to harbor CWD-infected deer have their deer tested for the disease prior to consumption,” it added. “LDWF provides CWD testing for hunter-harvested deer free of charge.”
