KY Expands CWD zone into Union, Webster

Kentucky Fish and Wildlife officials have expanded the state’s Chronic Wasting Disease (CWD) Surveillance Zone to include Henderson, Union and Webster counties following confirmation of a CWD-positive deer just across the state line in Posey County, Ind.

The Kentucky Fish and Wildlife Commission approved the measure this month, adding the three counties to a growing list of western Kentucky areas under heightened disease monitoring. The original zone already included Ballard, Breckinridge, Calloway, Carlisle, Fulton, Graves, Hardin, Hickman, Marshall, Meade and McCracken counties.

With the expansion, new regulations are now in place for hunters in the added counties, including mandatory testing, carcass transport restrictions and a ban on rehabilitating deer.

Mandatory CWD Testing

Hunters in Henderson, Union and Webster counties must submit their deer for testing during the first three days of modern gun season, Nov. 8–10, by visiting a staffed check station or using a CWD sample drop-off site.

Carcass Movement Restrictions

Hunters may not transport whole deer or high-risk parts out of the surveillance zone. Only de-boned meat, clean skulls and teeth, hides, antlers, and mounted trophies may be taken beyond county lines. However, deer harvested elsewhere in the state may be brought into the zone without restriction.

Baiting Now Allowed with Conditions

To encourage deer harvest and manage herd density, baiting is now permitted throughout the CWD

Surveillance Zone. The rule change overrides a prior baiting ban but still prohibits bait in contact-style feeders, such as troughs and gravity devices. Statewide, feeding remains banned from March 1 through July 31, and all baiting continues to be prohibited on Wildlife Management Areas.

Fish and Wildlife officials caution that baiting may increase the risk of disease transmission due to close contact between deer. CWD spreads through prions found in saliva, urine and feces of infected animals.

New Antlerless-Only Season

A special antlerless-only gun season will be held Sept. 27–28 in all counties under surveillance. Hunters may take deer without visible antlers, including button bucks, but antlered bucks may not be harvested by any method that weekend. Hunters must submit deer heads for testing and comply with hunter orange requirements.

Ongoing Statewide Monitoring

Since 2002, Kentucky has tested over 60,000 deer and elk for CWD. Although the disease is always fatal in infected animals, it is not known to spread to humans. Still, the CDC recommends not eating meat from any deer that tests positive or appears ill.

Free CWD testing remains available throughout the hunting season via drop-off locations or mail-in kits. Results are typically returned in 4–6 weeks.

For details on regulations, testing, and reporting sick or dead deer, visit fw.ky.gov/cwd or contact the Kentucky Fish and Wildlife Information Center at 800-858-1549.

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