The Missouri Department of Conservation (MDC) reports that it has confirmed 24 new cases of chronic wasting disease (CWD) in Missouri from nearly 27,000 tissue samples collected from white-tailed deer and submitted for disease testing this season. Most of the tissue samples were taken from hunter-harvested deer.
MDC says five new cases were found in each Franklin, Linn and Ste. Genevieve County; two in each Adair, Macon, Perry and Stone County; and one in Taney County.
CWD is a deadly disease in white-tailed deer and other members of the deer family. The purpose of MDC’s CWD sampling and testing efforts is to find cases early so the Department can limit the spread of the disease.
About 8,000 of the nearly 27,000 tissue samples MDC had tested this season were collected by taxidermists and meat processors around the state as part of the Department’s voluntary CWD sampling efforts. Free voluntary sampling continues through the end of deer season on January 15.
You can get more information on MDC’s website.

Photo provided by the Missouri Department of Conservation.