GREAT FALLS – Wildlife health staff with Montana Fish Wildlife & Parks recently detected chronic wasting disease (CWD) in a mule deer buck found dead within the city limits of Great Falls in January.
The adult buck was observed acting abnormally by a property owner, who later found the dead deer inside a building on the property. Biologists collected samples from the deer, and they were confirmed to be positive for CWD in two separate laboratory tests.
This is the first confirmed case of CWD within Great Falls city limits. A mule deer buck harvested by a hunter in Hunting District (HD) 405 about 15 miles east of Great Falls near Belt was confirmed to have CWD late last year.
CWD is a contagious neurological disease that infects deer, elk and moose. It is always fatal, and there is no known cure. It was first detected in Montana’s wild herds in 2017. The disease is known to exist in other parts of north-central Montana, especially north of Highway 2, as well as in other areas of the state.
