Chronic Wasting Disease Found in South Arkansas

The Arkansas Game and Fish Commission has confirmed that a white-tail deer taken in Union County tested positive for chronic wasting disease. According to the AGFC the deer was harvested in the Felsenthal National Wildlife Refuge during the permit-based annual modern gun deer hunt. This is the first confirmed case of CWD in south Arkansas with the nearest confirmed case within the state being more than 200 miles north. The nearest case to union county actually comes from Mississippi at 70 miles away.

Chronic wasting disease is a neurodegenerative disorder that affects deer, elk, moose, and the like. It often takes a year before an infected animal develops symptoms such as drastic weight loss, stumbling, and being lethargic. To date, there have been no reported cases of CWD infections in people, according to the CDC.

Authorities within the AGFC say they remain vigilant to researching and identifying the spread of the disease and that for the 2021-22 deer season no change in regulations will be made. Chief of the AGFC’s Research Division, Cory Gray, says they’ve already begun working on ways to gather more samples from the surrounding area to determine the extent of the infection in this part of the state. This includes more CWD drop-off containers which will serve for hunters to voluntarily submit their harvested deer for testing. Hunters who wish to have their deer tested for Chronic Wasting Disease can take the head of the deer, with 6 inches of neck still attached to one of the AGFC’s network of participating taxidermists to have a sample tested for free. You may also drop off the head at a CWD-test station freezer in your county.

Since the first detection the AGFC has tested more than 37,000 deer and elk across the state with 1,182 deer and 35 elk testing positive for the disease within the natural state.

For more information on participating taxidermist and CWD testing locations visit AGFC.com/CWD