Hunting deer? Testing now required in 4 hunt zones, including Madera

MADERA, Calif. ( KSEE/KGPE ) – Deer season starts Saturday, and hunters across four hunt zones, including Madera, are now required to test their catches for Chronic Wasting Disease (CWD), the California Department of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW) announced Friday.

The zones where testing is required include D7, X9a, X9b and X9c. A map of the zones can be found online .

The regulations are in response to recent CWD detections in the area. Fish and Wildlife says the tests will help them better understand the extent of the current outbreak, inform decision-makers, and help protect California’s deer and elk herds by limiting the spread of CWD.

The department says hunters will have 10 days to complete the testing. Hunters in the mandatory sampling zones are also required to provide their name, GO ID, deer tag or document number, and harvest location along with their samples.

A how-to-video, printable guide, and data card for CWD sampling, data collection and self-sample submissions can be found on CDFW’s website .

Permissible CWD sampling methods include:

• Bringing the deer, or just the head, to a California CWD sampling station or CDFW office ( wildlife.ca.gov/CWD/Sampling-Station )
• Bringing the deer head to a participating meat processor or taxidermist ( wildlife.ca.gov/CWD/Meat-Processors-Taxidermists )
• Hunters may self-sample their deer and bring the retropharyngeal lymph nodes directly to a California CWD sampling station or CDFW office ( wildlife.ca.gov/CWD/Sampling-Station )

“Hunters in California have always played a vital role in the conservation and health of our deer herds, and we need their help today more than ever to help manage CWD,” said Dr. Brandon Munk, senior wildlife veterinarian at CDFW.

CDFW says hunters can check test results by entering their document/tag number in the “Find Your CWD Testing Results” section of CDFW’s Chronic Wasting Disease Surveillance web pages. Result will be posted within three to five weeks of testing.

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