MT FWP Hosting Free Clinic On Collecting CWD Test Samples

September 19, 2023 By: Torin Miller

Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks (FWP) wildlife staff is offering a free clinic in Missoula on Wednesday, September 27 for hunters to learn how to collect samples from deer, elk, and moose so that they can be tested for chronic wasting disease (CWD).

The free instructional clinic is planned for September 27 from 6-8 p.m. at the FWP office in Missoula (3201 Spurgin Road). Attendees will get hands-on practice removing lymph nodes for testing.  CWD testing is voluntary in Montana, but FWP and the National Deer Association (NDA) encourage deer, elk, and moose hunters to help with disease management and understanding by collecting samples.

Participants in the September 27 clinic can bring a deer, elk, or moose head from a recent harvest if they have one, but this is not required. To RSVP and for additional information, please contact FWP’s Region 2 CWD Coordinator, Adalyn Vergara, at adalyn.vergara@mt.gov.

This fall, hunters can either take the samples themselves and fill out an online hunter submission form and mail them to the Wildlife Health Lab in Bozeman; or they can bring the animal (or head) to an FWP regional office or CWD sampling station.  Testing is free – see the FWP website for sampling station locations and hours:  fwp.mt.gov/cwd.

The NDA strongly encourages our Montana members and supporters, and especially those who live and/or hunt in and around CWD management zones, to attend the upcoming clinic. Engaged hunters and landowners are crucial to slowing the spread of CWD. Learn more about CWD at deerassociation.com/cwd.

About Torin Miller:

Torin Miller is a licensed attorney and NDA’s Senior Director of Policy. He works at the intersection of conservation and natural resources law, policy, advocacy and education. He has bachelor's and master's degrees in wildlife and fisheries science from Penn State University and a J.D. from Penn State Law. Torin came to NDA via the National Deer Alliance, where he served as the Policy and Outreach Coordinator.