Why track chronic wasting disease?

During public meetings, the question seems to always get asked — If you can’t stop chronic wasting disease, what’s the point of doing anything?

The Iowa Department of Natural Resources’ chronic wasting disease management objective is simple: to document the spread of the disease while balancing deer herd health with quality hunting opportunities, for as long as possible, while preparing Iowans for a future with chronic wasting disease.

“We’re trying to mitigate increased transmission and high prevalence rates by keeping deer numbers at a balanced level — in other words, avoiding overabundance,” Elliott said. “We’re not doing aggressive, targeted deer removals; all of our harvest and surveillance is voluntary.”

Iowa’s response to the disease has been measured, guided by current research and reliant upon public participation and support.

The importance of collecting samples is understanding local disease dynamics and openly sharing that information with the public, he said.

The CWD Response Plan provides a clear and structured blueprint to assess potential management options when appropriate, gives a nuanced approach to harvest-based management that takes into account local deer population, recent trends, current harvest levels and public tolerance.

It also helps with internal consistency and keeps staff up to date.

“Hunting plays a huge role in slowing the spread of the disease. We encourage hunters to continue hunting in Iowa and managing the herd for future generations,” Harms said.

Iowa is in its 24th year of monitoring for chronic wasting disease, and Iowa’s deer hunters have provided more than 110,000 tissue samples for testing. Iowa has been tracking the presence of chronic wasting disease since the first positive deer was found in Allamakee County in 2013.

“We need to continue the strong partnership we’ve built with our hunters and maintain public support for our deer management, and that goes beyond chronic wasting disease,” Elliott said. “The key word in our response plan is ‘voluntary.’ Iowa’s hunters are invaluable for making our surveillance program work every year. Without them, we would not be able to maintain the program.”

Iowa’s emphasis on ‘voluntary’ is somewhat unique. Many states have some type of mandatory sample submission or intense culling efforts.

“Hunters care. They’re passionate. It’s important to them. They want to do what they can to slow the spread of the disease,” said Tyler Harms, biometrician with the Iowa DNR. “The passion is there. They want to help, and you can’t get any better than that in my opinion.”