Zombie deer disease, also known as chronic wasting disease (CWD), continues to spread across the U.S., threatening at-risk white-tailed deer – and potentially the hunters who kill and eat them.
Indiana is the 33rd and latest state to report its first case of the disease. That was on April 5, the Indiana Department of Natural Resources says.
Other states have reported increases in cases, according to the National Wildlife Health Center of the U.S. Geological Survey.
As the disease becomes more widespread, a new study from the University of Texas that examined the deaths of two hunters suggests, but does not prove, that it may be possible for zombie deer disease to be transmitted from animals to humans. More research is needed, the study says.
Since being found in Colorado in the 1960s, the disease has been documented in 33 states and several foreign countries, according to the National Wildlife Health Center. Infection rates may surpass 10% in a number of areas where the illness is widespread.
Wildlife officials have warned hunters to avoid eating untested game. Research on mice led Canadian scientists to publish a study in 2022 that raised the possibility that humans could contract chronic wasting disease.
