DNR To Begin Taking More Statewide Approach To CWD After Detection In Grand Rapids

MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) -- The Minnesota DNR says the detection of chronic wasting disease in a wild white-tailed deer in Grand Rapids is prompting the agency to begin taking a more "statewide approach" to the disease.

According to the DNR, the detection was confirmed on March 15 and it's the first time CWD has been detected in this particular deer permit area. The agency will now begin to take immediate steps in understanding the prevalence of the disease in the area. That includes taking samples of road-killed deer in the area and exploring situations where targeted culling can happen safely.

DNR officials say the new discovery doesn't make the disease a statewide problem, but it does mean more of a statewide approach is needed. Part of that is the enhanced statewide surveillance.

The enhanced statewide surveillance will include:

- Updating the DNR's CWD response plan this spring
- Investigating options for hunters to use a self-mailing kit for free testing statewide
- Expanding the taxidermist network (Partner Sampling Program) statewide
- Upgrading and improving current design for self-service stations

CWD has been detected in eight areas spread across Minnesota, but still remains rare in the state. Of 106,000 deer tested statewide since 2002, 153 tested positive for CWD.

CWD is a prion disease, and it is always fatal to animals it infects. There are no treatments or vaccines. While it's currently known to affect deer and moose, studies suggest it could pose a risk to non-human primates, such as monkeys, if they eat meat from infected animals. According to the World Health Organization, it's important to keep prion diseases from entering the food chain.

While symptoms of CWD may take years to show in infected animals, they include stumbling, listlessness, and dramatic weight loss, hence the name. The symptoms are caused by abnormal folding of proteins in the brain, which lead to brain damage and rapid degeneration until death.

More information on the state's response to CWD can be found here.