AGFC: Chronic Wasting Disease detected in Cleburne and Baxter counties
LITTLE ROCK, Ark. – Two deer in Cleburne County and another deer in Baxter County have tested positive for chronic wasting disease, according to the Arkansas Game and Fish Commission.
Both deer were harvested during the 2024-25 deer hunting season. They join samples from Conway and Stone counties that were confirmed CWD-positive earlier in the season. Both Cleburne County deer were harvested within a quarter mile of each other.
'The probability of finding CWD in these counties eventually was high, given their proximity to other known positive cases,' AGFC wildlife health biologist AJ Riggs said. 'These new cases confirm that our protocols for early detection are effective.'
CWD in deer: What are the signs, and is the meat safe to eat?
Both positive samples came from 2-and-a-half-year-old bucks, and both were submitted through the AGFC's network of testing drop-off containers. The sample from Baxter County came from a 3-and-a-half-year-old buck that was harvested in November.
CWD is a fatal neurological disease that affects deer, elk, caribou and moose, which was first detected in Arkansas in February 2016.
Since the first detection, AGFC has tested more than 67,500 deer and elk from across the state. To date, 1,970 deer and 56 elk have tested positive for the disease in Arkansas.
Arkansas Game & Fish Commission expand chronic wasting disease zone, schedule open house workshops
For more information and an updated map of positive cases in Arkansas, please visit www.agfc.com/CWD.
Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
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