Tests underway for CWD in Deer

The State Department of Natural Resources is conducting random tests on deer during this hunting season to see if there’s any sign of Chronic Wasting Disease in the Iowa animals. In Union, Ringgold, Decatur, Taylor and Clarke County, Conservation officer Marc Roberg says he’ll test anywhere from 30 to 50 deer. He says deer from every area of the state will be tested and they’re going to get very specific down to the township where the deer were taken. Roberg says his job is to find the deer for the sample.He says he’s going around and finding groups who’ve taken several deer. To test the deer they have to take the head and take part of the brainstem to test. Roberg says he doesn’t want people to call him with deer to test. Roberg says hunters shouldn’t have any concern about getting the disease. He says they’ve had it 40 years in Colorado and no human has gotten the disease, as it can’t be transferred to humans. Roberg says you shouldn’t be alarmed if you see a sick deer, you should however contact him. He says animals with bowel problems don’t have C-W-D, he says the deer that have it lose weight with not visible signs of injury. The disease has not been detected in Iowa, and D-N-R officials hope identifying the disease early will help them control the disease if it is found in the state.