Wright County white-tail deer herd tests negative for Chronic Wasting Disease

Saint Paul, Minn - The Minnesota Board of Animal Health has lifted a quarantine in place since May 15, 2017, following the depopulation and testing of a CWD exposed Wright County white-tailed deer herd. CWD was not detected in any of the 30 white-tailed deer samples collected. The herd was initially placed under quarantine because the Board traced animal movements from this herd to one of the CWD positive herds found in an investigation earlier this year.

The owner chose to test the entire herd after the U.S. Department of Agriculture offered indemnity for the animals. This agreement led to the lifting of the quarantine because all deer on the property were euthanized for CWD testing, and the results didn’t detect the disease. This concludes the Board’s CWD investigation into this property.

“The Wright County herd was never considered infected and testing the remainder of this herd confirms no CWD infection was incubating in the animals,” said Board Assistant Director, Dr. Linda Glaser. “We originally placed it under quarantine for a five year period to monitor the herd for any signs of CWD as a surveillance and precautionary effort.”

One farmed cervid herd remains quarantined in Minnesota as part of an ongoing CWD investigation in Crow Wing County. This herd recently submitted 14 animals for testing and CWD was not detected in any of the animals. The owner is working with Board and USDA officials to submit additional animals for sampling in the coming weeks. The Board will release a summary of those testing results when harvesting is completed at the property.

CWD is a disease of deer and elk caused by an abnormally shaped protein, a prion, which can damage brain and nerve tissue. There is no danger to other animal species. The disease is most likely transmitted when infected deer and elk shed prions in saliva, feces, urine, and other fluids or tissues. The disease is always fatal, and there are no known treatments or vaccines. CWD is not known to affect humans, and consuming infected meat is not advised. Follow this link to read more about CWD.

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