To date, CWD has not been found in Nevada. It has been documented in Colorado, Kansas, Minnesota, Montana, Nebraska, New Mexico, Oklahoma, South Dakota, Wisconsin, Wyoming, Utah and Saskatchewan and Alberta, Canada. CWD can occur in both wild and captive mule deer, white-tailed deer and elk.

CWD is not a human health issue. Although, it may impact the states deer and elk herds. Exactly how, and to what extent, is not well understood. 

CWD belongs to a group of diseases known as transmissible spongiform encephalopathies (TSEs). TSEs cause a degeneration of the brain in deer and elk. CWD was first detected in 1967, in deer, within the northeast portion of Colorado.

Deer or elk with CWD show changes in natural behavior and can exhibit extreme weight loss, excessive salivation, stumbling, and tremors. CWD is always thought to be fatal to the infected animal, but it can take months or years before the symptoms of infection appear.

CWD can only be confirmed by laboratory examination of brain tissue. Scientists are working on a number of promising approaches that, in the future, may provide a live animal test for use on both deer and elk.

There is no evidence that CWD can infect people. CWD is not viewed as a human health issue.

Photos courtesy of Waahoo Productions and CSU, College of Vet Med & Biomedical Sciences

Useful Links:

Veterinary Services - Chronic Wasting Disease

Nebraska Game and Parks Commission - Chronic Wasting Disease

Nebraska Game and Parks Commission - Chronic Wasting Disease - Guidelines for Disposing Deer and Elk Carcasses

Nebraska Game and Parks Commission - Chronic Wasting Disease and Meat Processors

Nebraska Game and Parks Commission - Chronic Wasting Disease - CWD Test Results

Chronic Wasting Disease Alliance

Collecting Medial Retropharyngeal Lymph Nodes