MONTCALM TOWNSHIP, Mich. — The Michigan Department of Natural Resources says lab testing has confirmed that a doe killed in Montcalm County has chronic wasting disease (CWD).
The 3½-year-old deer was killed in Montcalm Township during Michigan’s youth hunting season in September.
The DNR said Friday that testing at the Department of Agriculture’s National Veterinary Services lab in Ames, Iowa confirmed that the deer had CWD. It’s the tenth deer in Michigan known to have the disease, out of the more than 14,000 that have been tested since 2015.
To prevent the spread of CWD, bow hunters are strongly encouraged to get their deer checked, especially if they are hunting in a nine township area surrounding this newest case in Montcalm Township. The DNR is requiring deer checks for firearms season beginning on Nov. 15.
“The best thing we can recommend is obviously reading the hunting and trapping guide and reading the latest news announcements on this Montcalm County situation,” Chad Stewart, a Deer Management Specialist with the Michigan DNR, told FOX 17 on Tuesday. “Make sure you’re legal in terms of what you can and can’t do and what you can and can’t take with your license.”
The DNR is also discouraging the feeding and baiting of deer in areas where CWD may be present, so the disease doesn’t spread at the bait pile. Starting Jan. 2, 2018, feeding and baiting will be banned in Kent and Montcalm counties.
