Monthly and Cumulative Chronic Wasting Disease (CWD) Test Results in Farmed and Wild Cervids in Alberta

On August 8, 2002, the Mandatory CWD Surveillance Program became effective in Alberta, requiring cervid owners to submit the heads for CWD testing, from all farmed cervids over one year of age that die or are slaughtered. Product from slaughtered animals must be held at abattoirs pending CWD test results.

CWD testing is conducted at the Alberta Agriculture and Rural Development (ARD) laboratory in Edmonton. Producers are required to submit heads to any ARD laboratory (Edmonton, Fairview, Airdrie, Lethbridge) in the province.

To download a pdf version of the CWD submission form, click here (size 42K). To download the word version, click here.

Hunters can find information from Alberta Sustainable Resource Development (ASRD) about where and how to submit wild cervid heads for testing.

The following tables display the current month and cumulative totals for CWD surveillance on farmed and wild cervids in Alberta from 1996 to the present.

Yearly CWD Testing Totals (1996-2001, 2002, 2003, 2004 and 2005)

1996-2001			2002		2003		2004		2005		2006		2007
SPECIES	FARMED	WILD	FARMED	WILD	FARMED	WILD	FARMED	WILD	FARMED	WILD	FARMED	WILD	FARMED	WILD
Elk	1,063	365	3,912	95	7,000	100	6,640	58	6,997	38	6,727	20	4,982	31
White-Tailed Deer	371	458	1,035	409	1,727	752	1,144	703	860	1,144	783	3,962	1,005	4,899
Mule Deer	36	981	10	546	38	379	72	541	59	1,093	39		33
Other*	14	8	32	9	46	0	48	0	45	1	77	1	77	1
Total	1,484	1,812	4,989	1,059	8,811	1,231	7,904	1,302	7,961	2,276	7,626	3,983	6,097	4,931
Yearly Total	3,296		6,048		10,042		9,206		10,237		11,609		11,028

*Antelope, reindeer, moose


CWD Testing Totals for 1996-2007

Type

Farmed	44,872
Wild	16,594
TOTAL	61,466

**All results are negative, except for 1 case detected in a farmed elk in March 2002, 2 cases detected in farmed white-tailed deer in November 2002. As of January 9, 2008, 34 CWD cases have been detected in wild deer in Alberta since September 2005.