Chronic wasting disease in cervids surveillance and control operations

The Gouvernement du Québec has implemented surveillance and control operations to reduce the risk of establishment of chronic wasting disease (CWD) in Québec. These operations aim to detect the disease while temporarily maintaining lower deer density in high-risk areas.

Surveillance of chronic wasting disease (CWD) for wild cervids and livestock is conducted to detect the disease quickly. It is necessary to intervene as soon as possible, thus maximizing the chances of eliminating the disease or limiting its spread. When the disease is detected on a farm, surveillance in wild cervids in the area is particularly critical, requiring intensive surveillance over many years to detect infected animals in wildlife. When the disease is detected in captive cervids, surveillance of wild cervids in the area is crucial, and must be intensive over several years to detect cases of infected animals. Some states now dealing with CWD have first detected the disease in livestock. Without sufficient surveillance, the disease was left undetected in wildlife for many years before the first cases were found. At that time, the disease was already well established and its elimination was no longer possible.

The disease is very difficult to detect when few deer are infected. An animal can carry and transmit CWD for months without showing any signs of the disease. In addition, tests are not effective for detecting the disease in animals that have been infected for less than 12 months.

All captive cervids over 12 months of age that are slaughtered or found dead are required to be tested for CWD. The analyses are carried out free of charge by the Laboratoire de santé animale of the ministère de l'Agriculture, des Pêcheries et de l'Alimentation du Québec.

Cervid owners who work with a veterinarian must submit laboratory samples via that veterinarian, using the Formulaire de demande d’analyse générale (PDF 74 Kb) (in French only).

Cervid owners who do not have a veterinarian must collect and freeze the head of the animals, then send them to the animal health laboratory for analysis by filling out the form Formulaire d'analyse pour la MDC réservé aux producteurs en l'absence de MVP référent (PDF 295 Kb) (in French only). Only positive results will be forwarded to the owner.

• Collection, packaging and shipping of cervid heads (PDF 182 Kb) (in French only)

Staff trained in the collection of obex and lymph nodes must follow the following instructions when submitting samples:

• Collection, packaging and shipping of obex and retropharyngeal nodes (PDF 355 Kb) (in French only)

Breeders and owners of hunting farms can contact the animal health laboratory for assistance in shipping their samples. For holders of a licence to keep animals in captivity issued by the ministère de l'Environnement, de la Lutte contre les changements climatiques, de la Faune et des Parcs, contact your regional wildlife management office.

As part of the CWD surveillance, all animals over 12 months of age, slaughtered in a federally or provincially inspected slaughterhouse, are tested for the disease. Collection and shipping for analysis is done directly on site (without need of intervention from the owner). At all times, Québec slaughterhouses supplying retail and food service establishments are subject to ongoing inspection by a veterinary doctor. All animals are examined before and after slaughter. This inspection allows for the assessment of animals and carcasses and the removal, where appropriate, of any animals or carcasses with abnormalities. No sick animals are introduced into the food chain.

Since 2007, the Gouvernement du Québec has been conducting a surveillance of CWD in wild deer. From 2007 to 2017, this program was focused on the administrative regions of Estrie and Montérégie. Both regions were considered high-risk for CWD introduction given their proximity to New York State, where cases were documented in 2005.

In 2018, cases of CWD were detected on a red deer farm in the Laurentides region. Following this event, disease surveillance was increased in the vicinity of the farm within a 45-km radius (PDF 3.02 Mb). From 2018 to 2023, hunters harvesting white-tailed deer or moose in this area were required to have their game tested. Since 2024, this requirement no longer applies.

Even though no cases have been detected in wildlife around the farm affected in 2018 and the risk of the disease being present is now considered low, CWD could still be circulating among wild cervids. Indeed, when the number of infected animals is low, testing a large number of individuals is necessary to detect the disease.

Since CWD can only be eliminated when it affects few animals, maintaining rigorous surveillance around the farm affected in 2018 remains essential. Hunters are strongly encouraged to have their game tested in 2025 to continue surveillance efforts.

Hunters who harvest a white-tailed deer over 12 months of age within a 45-km radius of the farm infected (PDF 3.02 Mb) in 2018 can contribute to CWD surveillance:

• By depositing the head of their game at a butcher shop (PDF 248 Kb) (in French only) participating in the CWD surveillance program or at certain offices of the ministère de l’Environnement, de la Lutte contre les changements climatiques, de la Faune et des Parcs.
• By contacting the Ministère at 581-994-2874 if they are unable to travel to a drop-off location.

At drop-off, be sure to have your hunting licence or your transport tag with you. Heads from which the skull cap has been removed can also be submitted, since the structures analyzed are located at the base of the jaw.

Since 2024, moose have no longer been tested.

Since 2018, the Gouvernement du Québec has also extended its surveillance to other regions of Québec with high white-tailed deer densities or a relatively high number of sites where cervids are kept in captivity. Surveillance of these areas is also carried out by a network of butcher shops (PDF 248 Kb) (in French only) that keep the heads of white-tailed deer over 12 months of age harvested by hunters.

Hunter sample test results

Testing of all samples taken from white-tailed deer hunted in 2024 is now complete. 

No samples tested positive for CWD.

For the 2025 hunting season, individual results will not be available online. A message will be posted the following spring, once all the tests have been completed. If an animal tests positive, the ministère de l’Environnement, de la Lutte contre les changements climatiques, de la Faune et des Parcs will contact the hunter directly.

Cervids kept in captivity 

Analyses are done every year by the ministère de l'Agriculture, des Pêcheries et de l'Alimentation to detect the disease in cervids kept in captivity. Here is the yearly compilation of CWD provincial surveillance. Since 2018, no other case of CWD has been detected on a farm.

* Following detection of the first case of CWD, the Canadian Food Inspection Agency carried out 1,783 tests on deer from the affected farm.

Wild cervids

To date, no wild cervids have tested positive for CWD in Québec. 

In the vicinity of the farm affected in 2018, surveillance results indicate that the disease does not appear to be present in wildlife. 

Consult the yearly reports on surveillance and control operations for chronic wasting disease in wild cervids:

• 2024 Report (PDF 1.28 Mb)
• 2023 Report (PDF 6.22 Mb)
• 2022 Report (PDF 1.73 Mb)
• 2021 Report (PDF 702 Kb)
• 2020 Report (PDF 2.60 Mb)
• 2019 Report (PDF 1.04 Mb)
• 2018 Report (PDF 12.04 Mb)

• The feeding of deer (in French only) is allowed only from September 1 to November 30.
• The use of natural deer urine for hunting purposes, no matter its origin, is prohibited at all times 
• The hunters must comply at all times with the rules specific to the different types of game harvested in Québec