Three more wild deer have tested positive for chronic wasting disease in southeastern Alberta.
Two mule deer and one white-tailed deer tested positive near Empress, Alta. A total of 20 cases have been found in the wild in Alberta since 2005.
The provincial government shot 169 mule deer and 280 white-tailed deer March 5-9 as part of a disease control program. The deer were shot in the Red Deer and South Saskatchewan River valley areas, believed to be high risk areas for the disease. Another 1,401 deer were shot in the Chauvin area and have yet to be tested.
During the 2006-07 hunting season, 3,000 deer and elk were tested and four mule deer tested positive for CWD. The positive cases led the province to increase disease control in the Chauvin and Empress areas.
CWD is a disease of the nervous system that causes infected animals to lose weight and waste away.
