Farmed Cervidae

A person who possesses farmed Cervidae, that are not white-tailed deer, in Minnesota must be registered with the Board of Animal Health and meet all the requirements specified in Minnesota Statutes 32.153, 35.155 and Minnesota rules 1721.0370 to 1721.0420.

The Minnesota Department of Natural Resources oversees farmed white-tailed deer. Visit the DNR’s “Deer Farms” webpage for regulations and information. Farmed Cervidae are livestock and are not wild animals for purposes of game farm, hunting or wildlife laws.

To register with the Board of Animal Health, the owner must submit a registration application and annual inspection fee. The fee is $500 for producers that manage their herd for profit or monetary gain, engage in transaction or exchanges for consideration, sell the ability to shoot animals in the herd, or if the herd consists of more than one species. The fee is $250 for all other herds.

Once the application and fee have been received, a Board agent will contact the applicant and arrange an inspection which must be conducted prior to moving farmed Cervidae onto the premises.

Inspections

Each registered farmed Cervidae premises must be inspected annually, at minimum, by an agent of the Board of Animal Health to verify compliance with Minnesota Statutes and Rules.

Official Identification

All farmed Cervidae must be individually and uniquely identified.

Herd Inventory

A complete animal inventory must be conducted every 12 months, verified by the owner and an accredited veterinarian and submitted to the Board of Animal Health.

A physical, hands-on inventory must be conducted every 36 months, verified by the owner and an accredited veterinarian and submitted to the Board of Animal Health.

Producers must report all farmed Cervidae that die or are moved out of the herd to other locations to the Board of Animal Health within fourteen (14) days of death or movement.

White-tailed deer producers must report deaths or movements to the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources.

Board of Animal Health staff will reconcile the inventory with animal information previously submitted to verify all animals are accounted.

All carcasses from farmed Cervidae that die, or are killed, must be disposed of within 72 hours, unless other arrangements for disposal have been approved by the Board of Animal Health. Leaving carcasses to decompose in place, on the open landscape, in open pits or ditches, or in or near water is illegal and unacceptable. Proper disposal is necessary to prevent spread of disease to people and other animals and to protect the environment.

Carcass disposal options:

• Incineration.
• Chemical digestion.
  • CWD positive and exposed carcasses indemnified by regulatory officials must be disposed of in this manner.
• Landfill.
  • You must contact the landfill to ensure they are approved and willing to accept carcasses.
• Onsite burial.
  • Carcasses should be buried within an enclosure to prevent contact with wild cervids.
• Composting.
  • Farmed Cervidae may be composted inside an enclosure. Please contact your inspector to discuss composting.

Chronic Wasting Disease positive, exposed, or suspect herds must be disposed of in a manner determined by the Board.

Chronic Wasting Disease (CWD) is a disease of Cervidae caused by an abnormally shaped protein, called a prion that can damage brain and nerve tissue. The disease is most likely transmitted from one animal to another through shedding of abnormal prions in saliva, feces, urine, and other bodily fluids or tissues. CWD is a slow and progressive disease without any known treatment or vaccine.

All farmed cervidae producers must test animals 6-months-old and older that die or are slaughtered for CWD. Tissue samples must be collected by an authorized sample collector and tested for CWD at an approved laboratory. White-tailed deer producers must report deaths or movements to the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources.

Farmed Cervidae producers can learn about biosecurity to protect their herd from CWD from the University of Minnesota.

If the Board of Animal Health determines CWD is endemic in the state, all locations within 10 miles of a confirmed case of CWD in wild Cervidae in the state must be designated as part of the endemic area.

If additional CWD positive free-ranging cervidae are found in subsequent surveillance of the wild deer herd, the endemic area may need to expand. The Board can designate a larger geographic area of the state if necessary to prevent the spread of CWD.

Farmed Cervidae that originate from a CWD endemic area may not be moved to other locations in the state unless they move directly to a slaughtering establishment having state or federal inspection. A permit must be obtained from the Board prior to movement of farmed Cervidae from a premises located within a CWD endemic area.

Click here to view the current endemic area map.

Bovine tuberculosis (Tb) is an infectious disease caused by Mycobacterium bovis that can affect many mammals, including members of the Cervidae family. The disease can be transmitted between livestock, humans, and other animals through respiratory and oral secretions from infected animals.

The Board of Animal Health administers a voluntary tuberculosis accreditation program for farmed Cervidae herds. To be awarded tuberculosis accredited status, a herd must be found negative on two consecutive whole herd tuberculosis tests conducted 9-15 months apart.

If your Cervidae herd has contact with cattle, bison, or goats on your farm,  those animals must also be tuberculosis tested to receive accredited status for your herd. To maintain Tb accredited status, the entire herd must be tested for tuberculosis every 36 months.

Bovine brucellosis is a contagious disease of ruminant animals caused by a bacteria, Brucella abortus. The disease is spread through fluids from infected animals an also affect humans.

The Board of Animal Health administers a voluntary brucellosis certification program for farmed Cervidae herds. To be awarded brucellosis certified status, a herd must be found negative on two consecutive whole herd brucellosis tests conducted 9-15 months apart.

If your Cervidae herd has contact with cattle or bison on your farm, then these animals must also be brucellosis tested to receive certified status for your herd. To maintain brucellosis certification status, the entire herd must be tested for brucellosis every 36 months.