LOUISVILLE, Ky. — A disease affecting white-tailed deer, elk and other animals in the deer family has been found in Kentucky.
The Kentucky Department of Agriculture said lab testing confirmed Chronic Wasting Disease was found in a deceased deer from a Breckinridge County deer farm following lab testing.
It was the first case of the disease found in a captive cervid, but overall Kentucky’s second. The last reported case was in Ballard County in 2023.
What is Chronic Wasting Disease?
According to the Kentucky Department of Fish and Wildlife, CWD is a degenerative neurological disease characterized by behavioral changes and progressive loss of body condition. The disease is transmitted from animal to animal via direct contact and contamination of feed or water sources with saliva, urine and feces.
The highly contagious disease affects white-tailed deer, elk, moose, caribou or non-native species of deer. There is not a known cure or vaccine, but it ends in death for infected animals. It has spread extensively among deer and elk populations for last 20 years, according to the KFW.
The disease isn’t known to be transmissible to humans, however, the CDC recommends not eating meat from deer that test positive for the disease. KFW always recommends not eating meat from animals appearing to be sick or in poor condition.
Currently, Agriculture officials have issued a quarantine restricting movement into or out of the Breckinridge County facility which includes live deer or deer products.
KFW officials are working with national, state and local partners in response to the new detection.
More than 40,000 deer have been tested for CWD since 2002.
Hunters can help KFW monitoring efforts by dropping off heads of legally harvested and telechecked deer for CWD testing and aging at self-serve CWD Sample Drop-off sites. It’s free for hunters. Click here for more information.
You can also report deer that appear to be sick but uninjured to KFW’s online reporting form.
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