State wildlife officials say chronic wasting disease was detected in a deer within the city limits of Baker in southeastern Montana. CWD is a fatal neurological disease that infects members of the deer family.
Montana Fish Wildlife and Parks says there is no known transmission of CWD to humans. However the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends that hunters harvesting a deer, elk or moose in an area where CWD is known submit a sample of the meat for testing before it’s consumed. The CDC says the meat of an animal that tests positive should not be eaten.
FWP says chronic wasting disease is known to exist in the wild in northwest Montana, along the Hi-Line, as well as in south central and southwest Montana.