Seventy new cases of chronic wasting disease have been found in Arkansas since deer season opened in September, according to the Arkansas game and Fish Commission.
The cases were found in samples collected by Game and Fish biologists, taxidermists and veterinarians.
Hunter can check the results for chronic wasting disease from their sample at www.arkansascwd.com
None of the samples found the disease had spread to new areas. The disease has been found in Boone, Carroll, Madison, Marion, Newton, Pope and Searcy counties since September. The disease also was previously detected in Van Buren County.
Cory Gray, manager of the Game and Fish research, education and compliance division, said overall the results have been as good as can be expected.
"We have taken more than 2,400 samples so far this season, and we have several batches of samples still at the laboratory," Gray said. "But most of the positive cases are reinforcing where we believe the disease is most prevalent. Once we have completed this year's sampling, we hopefully will have a clearer picture of disease distribution."
Gray said hunters who turn in samples that come back positive for chronic wasting disease are being notified as soon as possible. Biologists will work with hunters to collect and dispose of any meat from disease-positive animals and reinstate their game tag if possible.
Gray said the agency's partnership with taxidermists around the state continues to be invaluable.
"Last year we worked with taxidermists to gather samples from deer turned in to be mounted, but this year we've really tried to advertise to people that any deer can be taken to one of our participating taxidermists to have a CWD sample pulled for free," he said.
"We don't have the manpower to pull samples all over the state throughout the entire deer season, so this partnership really helps give hunters peace of mind about their deer and helps us continue to monitor for the disease outside the focal area, where we know we have it."
Any hunter can have a deer tested by taking the head with about 6 inches of neck attached to one of the participating taxidermists listed on www.arkansascwd.com.
Chronic wasting disease is a fatal neurological disease that affects members of the deer and elk family. It was first described in 1967 in Colorado and has spread to 23 additional states, Canada, South Korea, and Norway. It was discovered in Arkansas in February 2016.
There has been no confirmed case of the disease affecting humans or livestock, but with an abundance of caution, the Centers for Disease Control recommends hunters test their harvested game and warns that people should not consume any deer or elk known to have it.
Sports on 12/12/2017