Chronic wasting found in Lincoln Co.

A doe mule deer near Thayne was found dead and a Wyoming Game and Fish Department employee sent it to the Wildlife Health Laboratory in Laramie for testing, and it came back positive for CWD. The mule deer was found near Thayne in deer hunt area 145. West of the continental divide, a moose tested positive for CWD in Star Valley in 2008 and in 2012 three mule deer tested positive in the city limits of Green River.

“Seeing a deer test positive for CWD west of the continental divide again is concerning,” Scott Edberg, Deputy Chief of the Wildlife Division, said. “We have tested thousands of deer, elk and moose in this area and have not seen a positive for many years.

Game and Fish will look closely at this case to see if we can gain additional information and will continue to monitor aggressively in the area.”

In the just-completed round of testing, two additional doe mule deer near Cody also tested positive for CWD. One deer was found dead east of Wapiti in deer hunt area 111, the other was in the city limits of Cody in deer area 113 and showed signs of illness. These two deer and the deer found near Thayne represent new CWD positive deer hunt areas. Over 2,600 CWD samples have been collected in and adjacent to deer hunt areas 111 and 113 since 2003. These tests come on the heels of Game and Fish updating its CWD management strategy and receiving direction from its Commission to intensify efforts to further manage the fatal disease.

“Game and Fish is always concerned about seeing CWD spread. We have a very active monitoring program and finding these infected deer shows the program is effective. The challenge now is to build on work to slow the transmission of CWD,” Edberg said. “Game and Fish is moving ahead with developing strategies for building on CWD management, surveillance, and research.”

“We thank all of the people who keep an eye out for wildlife exhibiting signs of illness. Removing those animals is one way we know can help slow the spread of diseases like CWD. Please call Game and Fish if you see any animal that seems sick or dying,” Edberg said.