The Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries (LDWF) reminds deer hunters of regulations for the Chronic Wasting Disease (CWD) Control Area in northeast Louisiana, which includes all of Tensas Parish and portions of Madison and Franklin parishes. 

The regulations, which apply ONLY to the CWD Control Area, are intended to reduce spread of the disease.

The regulations were initiated in response to a CWD positive detection on Jan. 28, 2022 of an adult buck harvested in Tensas Parish. CWD is a neurodegenerative disease of white-tailed deer and other members of the deer family. The disease is infectious, always fatal in deer and has no known treatment.

The disease can be transmitted from live deer, deer carcasses, or other environmental sources such as plants or soil contaminated from exposure to CWD positive deer or deer carcasses. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) there is no evidence that CWD can infect humans. However, the CDC recommends caution in handling venison in the infected region and that deer be tested for CWD before consuming. CWD positive deer should not be consumed by people.

To learn more about CWD and complete regulations, go to: https://www.wlf.louisiana.gov/page/cwd .

Here is a summary of CWD Control Area regulations:

For more information, contact LDWF Deer Program Manager Johnathan Bordelon at jbordelon@wlf.la.gov