‘Zombie deer, elk disease’ confirmed in Washington: What you should know

Chronic Wasting Disease (CWD) is an insidious disease afflicting deer, elk and moose populations in three-dozen states across the country, including ours. The symptoms, which may not appear for months, are unmerciful and incurable. Picture a deer listless, shaking uncontrollably, excessively salivating and appearing confused until it dies. The disease, also called “Zombie Deer Disease” is 100% fatal. There is no vaccine or treatment.

The Washigton Department of Fish and Wildlife (WDFW) confirmed the first case of CWD in Washington in Aug. 2024 in north Spokane County. WDFW said it remains the only confirmed case in the state. There are also confirmed cases in Idaho and four Canadian provinces. In response, the agency created new rules for hunters and wildlife lovers to try and limit spread of the deadly disease.

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One of those new rules includes how deer, elk and moose carcasses are transported across Washington from other states and Canada, and from three Government Management Units (GMU’s) 124, 127 and 130. Those GMU’s cover an area surrounding Spokane — from Newport, WA in the north to the cities of Rosalia and Sprague to the south, and east to west from the Idaho border to Reardan, WA.

All meat from deer, elk and moose harvested in those areas must be de-boned and all soft tissue from skulls and antlers removed. Violators can face criminal charges, including a gross misdemeanor carrying a maximum penalty of a $5,000 fine or one year in jail.

WDFW also requires hunters submit samples of deer, elk or moose within three days of being harvested. outside the state or from established several new rules to manage the spread of CWD that affect both hunters and members of the general public

CWD is a transmissible spongiform encephalopathy (TSE). TSE’s make up a family of diseases thought to be caused by misfolded proteins called prions and include similar diseases such as bovine spongiform encephalopathy, know better as mad cow disease, and Creutzfeldt–Jakob disease (CJD) in humans. The only way to confirm the presence of CWD is to test animal lymph node or brain tissue. Symptoms of CWD don’t show until end stages of the disease, so infected animals can spread it long before humans may know they have it.

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According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), six in 10 people eat venison and elk meat. CWD has not been known to infect people, but research is still being done. The Washington State Department of Health and CDC recommend people do not eat animals that test positive for CWD or appear to have it.

More information on the new WDFW rules can be found on their website.

Luke Duecy is a reporter, editor and anchor at KIRO Newsradio. You can read more of Luke’s stories here. Follow Luke on X, or email him here.