Deer health update ahead of archery deer season opener

​FRANKFORT, Ky. (Aug. 28, 2025) — With Kentucky's archery deer season opening Saturday, Sept. 6, 2025, the Kentucky Department of Fish and Wildlife Resources urges hunters to review regulations and stay informed about deer health, including the latest disease monitoring update. In particular, hunters should be aware of the latest information regarding Chronic Wasting Disease (CWD) and Hemorrhagic Disease (HD) in Kentucky.

Chronic Wasting Disease

In October 2024, the Kentucky Department of Agriculture (KDA) confirmed its first case of CWD in a captive deer at a Breckinridge County farm, marking the state's second overall detection of the disease. This month KDA confirmed eight new CWD positive deer at the same facility.

After the initial detection, Breckinridge, Hardin and Meade counties were added to the CWD Surveillance Zone. There are no changes to regulations in the zone due to the additional detections. The department continues active CWD monitoring in these areas.

“We established a CWD Surveillance Zone in the area as a proactive step in part to prepare for the possibility that additional CWD infected animals would be detected inside the farm," said Gabe Jenkins, Kentucky Fish and Wildlife deputy commissioner. “We have confidence in both the zone and our monitoring efforts — they're in place to stay ahead of the disease and protect the state's wild deer and elk herds."

Chronic Wasting Disease is caused by abnormal prions and affects white-tailed deer, elk and other cervids. It is always fatal, with no known cure or vaccine. There is not an approved CWD test for live animals.

Testing by Kentucky Fish and Wildlife has found no new detections of CWD in a wild deer in the state since the initial Ballard County case in 2023.

CWD Surveillance Zone Regulations

The CWD Surveillance Zone includes Ballard, Breckinridge, Calloway, Carlisle, Fulton, Graves, Hardin, Henderson, Hickman, Marshall, McCracken, Meade, Union and Webster counties.

Hunters should be familiar with special regulations in these counties:

• Carcass movement restrictions are in effect—whole carcasses cannot be taken out of the CWD Surveillance Zone. Only the following parts may be transported: deboned meat, antlers (with or without a clean skull cap), clean skulls with no brain tissue, clean teeth, hides and finished taxidermy mounts.
• Baiting is allowed with restrictions. Contact-style feeders (such as troughs, funnels and gravity feeders) are prohibited. Baiting remains banned on public lands.
• Scent attractants and urine products are still allowed.
• The rehabilitation of cervids is prohibited in the CWD Surveillance Zone.
• Mandatory check of all harvested deer in Henderson, Union and Webster Counties on November 8-10, 2025, at a staffed CWD Check Station or a CWD Sample Drop-off site within these counties.

To aid surveillance, a special antlerless-only modern firearm season will be held Sept. 27–28, 2025, in all surveillance zone counties. Hunters must submit the head of harvested deer from this season at a CWD Sample Drop-off site. Testing is free.

Testing for CWD is also available statewide via drop-off sites and CWD Sample mail-in kits.

Hemorrhagic Disease

The department is also monitoring Hemorrhagic Disease, which appears annually in Kentucky. It is caused by a virus spread by biting midges and is not transmissible between deer. It poses no risk to humans or pets.

Cases confirmed through lab testing this year have been reported in Lyon, Scott, Warren and Wayne counties. Infected deer often develop a fever and seek out water, which is why they're frequently found dead near streams or ponds. While some deer recover and develop immunity, the disease can also cause sudden, localized die-offs.

“People often confuse CWD and HD, but they're very different," said Dr. Christine Casey, wildlife veterinarian with Kentucky Fish and Wildlife. “Hemorrhagic Disease is a virus spread by biting midges, and some deer do survive it. Chronic Wasting Disease, on the other hand, is caused by a prion, and deer infected with it do not survive. It's important to understand those differences when talking about deer health."

Reports of HD typically diminish within a couple of weeks of the first hard frost, which kills the midges.

How Hunters Can Help

To report sick or dead deer, contact the Kentucky Fish and Wildlife Information Center at 800-858-1549 or info.center@ky.gov weekdays from 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. (Eastern), excluding holidays, or use the Report Sick or Dead Wildlife webpage on the department's website.

Extensive information is available in the 2025-2026 Kentucky Hunting and Trapping Guide, available online and at vendor locations, or on the Deer Hunting webpage available on the department's website (fw.ky.gov).

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