Game and Fish encourages you to sample your own mule deer or bring it to one of Game and Fish’s hunter check stations or district offices to be sampled.
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LUSK - The Wyoming Game and Fish Department will continue to collect chronic wasting disease (CWD) samples from hunter-harvested mule deer this fall in the Lusk area.
The primary purpose of collecting these samples will be to monitor the prevalence of CWD in mule deer. The Game and Fish encourages mule deer hunters to take advantage of these sampling opportunities to help us collect valuable data for wildlife management. While this CWD surveillance enables hunters to find out whether their harvested mule deer has CWD, hunters should know their test results may not be available until a few weeks after submission (well after meat processing). Hunters should refer to the information below regarding CWD surveillance.
A Game and Fish employee will be stationed at Lusk Game Processing in Lusk from Oct. 1 through Oct. 3. Beyond those dates, game wardens and biologists in the Lusk area will opportunistically sample your harvested mule deer during routine field checks. For more information regarding CWD sample collection in the Lusk area call the Casper Regional Game and Fish Office at (307) 473-3400.
Casper Game and Fish Wildlife Management Coordinator Justin Binfet states, “Game and Fish encourages you to sample your own mule deer or bring it to one of Game and Fish’s hunter check stations or district offices to be sampled. To participate in the Game and Fish’s CWD surveillance effort, leave a few inches of neck below the jaw line to ensure a sample can be collected.”
An instructional video is available from Game and Fish on how to collect your own samples at: https://youtu.be/-jpvxatk0gw. If you collect your own sample keep the lymph nodes cool and submit it to Game and Fish as soon as possible.
CWD samples can also be taken if a hunter stops at any Game and Fish office during business hours (Monday through Friday, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.). The hunter may have to leave the head at the office until such a time a warden or biologist is available to take the sample as they are in the field a majority of the hunting season. But, it is usually best to call first to see what arrangements can be made.
For more information about CWD in Wyoming, visit the WGFD website at https://wgfd.wyo.gov and visit wildlife diseases. For more information about CWD in North America, visit the CWD Alliance website at http://www.cwd-info.org/.
