Louisiana ‘Zombie Deer’ Count Now Up To 19

A few years ago, the CDC issued a warning to Louisiana hunters about "Zombie Deer". Now, the Louisiana’s Department of Wildlife and Fisheries is reporting a total of 19 deer afflicted with chronic wasting disease.

Chronic Wasting Disease

Chronic Wasting Disease (CWD) is a fatal, neurodegenerative illness affecting deer, elk, reindeer, and moose.

CWD is caused by prions leading to brain damage and the characteristic symptoms of the disease.

Symptoms of CWD in affected animals include drastic weight loss (wasting), stumbling, lack of coordination, listlessness, drooling, excessive thirst or urination, aggression, and a lack of fear of humans.

The symptoms listed above are what give deer afflicted with CWD a zombie like appearance, prompting the term "Zombie Deer".

The disease is always fatal, and there are no treatments or vaccines available.

Since 2018, biologists from Louisiana’s Department of Wildlife and Fisheries have been on high alert for CWD after a case was reported in Mississippi.

Louisiana reported it's first confirmed case of CWD in 2022 in Tensas Parish which right next to Mississippi.

According to KLFY "the Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries declared an emergency and designated a “control area” that included Tensas Parish and parts of Concordia, Franklin, and Madison parishes."

On Friday (2/9/24) officials with the LDWF reported there are now 19 known, confirmed cases of chronic wasting disease in Louisiana.

Officials have now designated a control area that included Tensas Parish, as well as parts of Concordia, Franklin, and Madison parishes.

From KLFY.com -

"According to the Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries, hunters in the control area are prohibited from hunting over bait such as grain or salt and are forbidden to take whole deer carcasses out of the area; however, they are free to transport deboned meat or other parts of the carcass under certain conditions."

Read more at KLFY.com.