Ohio DNR Mandates Deer Testing in Nine Counties as CWD Spreads

Ohio Department of Natural Resources officials are actively tracking two separate diseases that threaten the state's deer population. While one poses an immediate seasonal risk, the other presents a long-term structural challenge to herd stability.

Hemorrhagic disease, transmitted by a tiny midge, caused significant mortality in southern Ohio last year. This season, the virus has expanded its reach to northern regions, specifically affecting Lorain and Portage counties. Clint McCoy, the agency's deer program administrator, noted that warmer weather driven by climate change favors the midge populations that carry the virus.

The agency views hemorrhagic disease as a short-term threat because surviving deer develop antibodies against the virus. McCoy explained that once an animal survives exposure, it builds up protection against future infections. Public assistance remains vital in tracking this spread, as residents are encouraged to report any dead or sick deer they encounter.

Chronic Wasting Disease, or CWD, represents a more persistent problem for wildlife managers. McCoy stated that the disease has historically spread everywhere it has been detected in the United States. The illness is caused by a prion, an aberrant protein fragment that lodges in the deer's brain and is fatal to the animal.

Deer infected with CWD can take up to 18 months to die, allowing them to spread the prion to other animals through contact or contaminated soil, water, and plants. McCoy indicated that prions can remain viable in soil for years, making it impossible to eradicate the disease once it becomes established in a specific area.

New regulations will take effect when gun season begins later this month. Hunters in Allen, Hardin, Marion, and Wyandot counties, along with portions of Crawford, Morrow, Delaware, Union, and Hancock counties, must submit all harvested deer for CWD testing. This surveillance zone covers the specific regions where the agency is monitoring the disease's progression.

Statewide, approximately 220,000 deer are harvested annually. While it remains unknown whether the prion can infect humans, officials advise hunters not to consume meat from deer that test positive for the disease.