Begin Main Content Area

​Chronic Wasting Disease (CWD)


Chronic wasting disease (CWD), is a contagious, always-fatal brain disease that affects members of the deer family. It was discovered in Pennsylvania's free-ranging white-tailed deer in 2012 and continues to be a threat to deer and elk in the Commonwealth.

Since then, the number of deer testing positive for CWD has risen and the area in which it is found has expanded.

To learn more about CWD, Disease Management Areas, testing, surveillance, and research, click the photo above.