Just as the 2025 deer hunting season begins Saturday, Nov. 15, Allegan County is the 17th county in Michigan to report chronic wasting disease (CWD) in local deer.
The Michigan Department of Natural Resources (DNR) indicated that Leighton Township residents told the DNR in September about noticing a one-year-old doe in poor physical condition with no body fat. The does afterward was humanely euthanized.
Chronic wasting disease is a slow-developing, fatal neurological disease that affects white-tailed deer, elk and moose.
It has also been detected in Clinton, Dickinson, Eaton, Genesee, Gratiot, Hillsdale, Ingham, Ionia, Isabella, Jackson, Kent, Mecosta, Midland, Montcalm, Ogemaw and Washtenaw counties this fall.
Though the DNR does not require it, hunters can get their deer tested with a free CWD self-sampling submission kit. Deer that look emaciated, lethargic, disoriented, lame, or unresponsive are suspected of suffering from the malady. But DND officials said healthy-looking deer can still test positive for the disease.
The public is encouraged to report sick deer to the DNR. The closest facility would be in Plainwell.
The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends that people and pets not consume infected animals as food. Hunters are urged to wear rubber gloves, minimize contact with the deer’s brain and spinal tissue, and wash hands with soap and warm water after handling any part of the carcass.
