DNR invites all deer hunters to join in special CWD hunts

The Minnesota Department of Natural Resources is inviting all area deer hunter to participate in two special hunts in southeastern Minnesota this December and January. The special hunts are aimed at limiting the spread of chronic wasting disease in wild deer.

Residents and nonresidents can participate in the hunts from Saturday, Dec. 26, through Sunday, Dec. 27, and Saturday, Jan. 2, through Sunday, Jan 3, in deer permit area 343, the entire southeast management zone, and the south metro management zone.

All hunters, including archers, who harvest deer in these deer permit areas during the special hunts must submit a sample from any harvested deer to a self-service sampling station for disease testing. In other 2020 deer hunting seasons, hunters in designated areas were strongly encouraged, but not required, to submit samples.

Since CWD was first detected in Minnesota in 2002, the DNR has tested more than 90,000 wild deer in the state. To date, 104 wild deer have tested positive for CWD in Minnesota. CWD affects the cervid family, which includes deer, elk and moose. There is no vaccine or treatment for this disease.