Latest test shows CWD in third N.D. mule deer

BISMARCK (AP) — A third mule deer in North Dakota has tested positive for chronic wasting disease.

A hunter shot the doe in western Grant County the opening weekend of the deer gun season, Game and Fish Department wildlife veterinarian Dan Grove said Tuesday. The deer tested positive for CWD at a Michigan State University lab. The results were being verified at an Iowa State University lab.

CWD, a fatal malady of the nervous system in members of the deer family, is present in numerous states and Canadian provinces. North Dakota had been somewhat of an island when it came to CWD until the first infected deer was killed in late 2009. A second deer tested positive late last year. All three infected deer were killed in the south central part of the state, within 15 miles of one another.

“The latest positive emphasizes the importance of continued monitoring along with current and expanding CWD restrictions in and around this (hunting) unit,” Grove said.

Game and Fish has a surveillance program that collects deer heads from hunters for testing, and also tests animals that are found dead or sick. The department also has implemented hunting restrictions in the unit where the CWD cases have been found that are aimed at keeping the disease from spreading.

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