Kentucky Fish and Wildlife to hold public meeting in Henderson County about Chronic Wasting Disease

FRANKFORT, Ky. (April 24, 2025) — Officials with the Kentucky Department of Fish and Wildlife Resources have scheduled a public meeting in Henderson County to address concerns about Chronic Wasting Disease (CWD). The meeting will be from 6:30 – 8:30 p.m. (CT) on Thursday, May 8, 2025, at North Middle School, 1707 2^nd St. in Henderson.

The meeting follows confirmation from the Indiana Department of Natural Resources that a 2½-year-old male deer, harvested by a hunter in Posey County, Indiana, tested positive for CWD. Posey County sits just across the Ohio River from Kentucky's Henderson and Union counties. Multiple tests confirmed the presence of the disease in the deer.

Kentucky Fish and Wildlife staff will share insights on CWD, review proposed regulations, answer questions and receive public input.

Chronic Wasting Disease is a fatal neurological disease affecting the cervid family, including deer, elk and moose. The disease not only affects individual deer, but it also causes long-term effects in deer herd health. It can also adversely affect hunting participation; hunting is vital for keeping deer numbers in check on a large scale.

To date, CWD has been detected in Kentucky twice: in a wild deer in Ballard County in November 2023, and more recently in a captive deer from a permitted captive deer facility in Breckinridge County in October 2024.

While CWD is not known to be transmissible to humans, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recommends that hunters avoid consuming meat from deer that test positive for the disease as a precaution. Kentucky Fish and Wildlife also advises against consuming meat from animals that appear sick or unhealthy.

Deer that appear sick but do not have an obvious injury can be reported using the department's sick deer online reporting form. The wildlife health program staff will review the reports and contact the person submitting the information if further details are needed.

For the latest information on CWD, please visit the department's Chronic Wasting Disease page on its website (fw.ky.gov) and follow its social media channels.

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