With several cases of chronic wasting disease (CWD) having been reported in north Mississippi, the Mississippi Dept. of Wildfire, Fisheries and Parks is encouraging all hunters to have their deer tested for the highly contagious disease. Toward that aim, there is now a drop site located at WMA Headquarters at 2121 Webster Rd. in Choctaw County, which is a little over a mile off of Choctaw Lake Rd.
According to Tommy Bowman, there are signs indicating that this is a CWD Drop Site, which is a large, walk-in cooler that is accessible at any time day or night.
The testing procedure consists of the hunter placing the deer head in a sack which is provided on-site; he will fill out a card, also on-site, and attach it to the sack.
The heads are picked up at least once a week, and tested for the presence of the disease; the hunter is usually notified of the results within seven to ten days.
Currently, there have been only four cases reported in the state. Bowman stated that there were none in Choctaw County and he does not believe the county has a problem, as the ‘hot spot’ is in north Mississippi. There has been an outbreak in Tennessee, just across the state line, with a least two cases reported in Marshall County.
However, due to the extreme contagious nature of the disease it is imperative to try and contain it in those locations where it has already been reported. Bowman stated that the disease is fatal; once a deer becomes infected there is no hope of recovery. It can be passed from deer to deer simply by grazing in the same food plot or eating from the same feeder.
MDWFP is urging all hunters to have their deer tested to help contain and eradicate this disease.
