Saskatchewan will continue testing for chronic wasting disease this fall hunting season.
The province announced its annual financial commitment of $240,000 last week for testing at the Canadian Co-operative Wildlife Heath Centre in Saskatoon.
Hunters are asked to once again submit samples to environment ministry offices or private collection stations before Jan. 15.
CWD is a fatal disease contracted by deer and elk. Information from testing is used to track and control spread of the disease.
Heads from adult deer or elk are tested at no charge to the hunter. Individuals must supply their names, phone numbers and hunter licence numbers, the date and zone where the animal was killed, including legal land location or GPS co-ordinates, and the species and sex of the deer or elk.
Read Also
Bird repellent gets emergency approval for sunflowers
Bird repellent gets emergency approval for sunflowers
Antlers must be removed and the heads should be submitted in leak-proof plastic bags.
Last year, the wildlife health centre tested samples from 5,700 wild deer and found 50 affected animals. These included 42 mule deer, five white-tailed deer and three elk.
“CWD now is established in wild deer in at least three different regions of Saskatchewan, has spread into Alberta and is moving closer to Manitoba,” said the centre’s 2008-09 annual report.
The province has tested 43,141 heads since testing began in 1997.
