Aimless wandering and listlessness can be a symptom of CWD. Because of this, deer that are wandering away from other wildlife and on to the nearby roads can present more of a safety concern to Wisconsinites than non-infected deer.

Through a 5-year research study that began in 2016, Wisconsin’s Department of Natural Resources is hunting the effects of Chronic Wasting Disease in its deer and elk population in hopes that they can better determine how to safely combat the rising issue.

The CWD Alliance defines Chronic Wasting Disease (CWD) as a neurological disease that causes spongy degeneration of the brain in deer, elk, and moose. Found in the infected host’s central nervous system and lymphoid tissue, the disease is thought to be caused by an abnormal protein called a prion which causes other…