Federal and state agencies are working to control any spread of CWD in these areas. FWP also tests elk and deer that display clinical symptoms that suggest CWD and none of these animals has tested positive. Any animal that dies on one of 83 currently licensed alternative livestock facilities in Montana must be tested for CWD by law. The only positive animals found were the nine that tested positive at the Philipsburg alternative livestock facility. FWP encourages hunters and others who see animals with any of these symptoms to contact the nearest FWP office.
Studies are underway now to understand more about the disease.
Hunters or others who notice animals that seem to display symptoms of CWD should immediately contact the nearest FWP office and report the animal and location it was last seen. In the 1970 s, CWD was diagnosed in captive deer in wildlife research facilities in Colorado and Wyoming. The first case of Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathy in cows was identified in 1985-86 in Great Britain. In late 2000, Nebraska identified the first case of CWD in the wild there. In total about 100 deer will be harvest and tested in this area.