Baiting and feeding ban will begin Dec. 1, 2017 for Monroe County after positive CWD detection confirmed in Vernon County
MADISON - The Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources has received confirmation that a wild deer tested positive for chronic wasting disease in northeastern Vernon County which already has a prohibition on baiting and feeding due to a previous detection in the area. As required by law, this finding will initiate a baiting and feeding ban for Monroe County, effective Dec. 1, 2017. Since Monroe County is adjacent to a county with a CWD positive test result, the ban will be in place for a 2-year period however individuals interested in baiting or feeding deer should know that if any additional positive test results occur over the next two years, the ban will be extended accordingly.
The 1-year-old doe was harvested in Greenwood township and is the first confirmed positive in Vernon County. To find out if the disease is present in other wild deer in the area, the DNR will conduct disease surveillance within a 10-mile radius around the positive location.
State law requires that the Wisconsin DNR enact a ban on feeding and baiting of deer in counties or portions of counties within a 10-mile radius of a captive or free-roaming domestic or wild animal that tests positive for CWD or tuberculosis. The two-year baiting and feeding ban will take effect for Monroe County beginning Dec. 1, 2017.
Since baiting and feeding is already prohibited in Vernon County, this finding re-starts the clock on a three-year baiting and feeding ban there due to this CWD detection.
For more information regarding baiting and feeding regulations and CWD in Wisconsin, visit the department's website, dnr.wi.gov, and search keywords "bait" and "CWD" respectively.