As long rifle hunting season for deer approaches, a caution

(Harrisburg) — As the busiest day of the deer hunting season arrives in less than two weeks, experts are watching another development: Chronic Wasting Disease.

CWD is fatal for deer, and undetectable until after the animal has died.

Twenty-four states have reported positive tests for the brain disorder.

It was first detected in Pennsylvania in 2012.

Doctor Craig Schultz, the state veterinarian, says those hunting should be mindful of it, but not afraid.

“We should not consume positive venison, just in an abundance of caution, but otherwise we don’t consider it to be a public health concern,” he says.

If a deer dies of Chronic Wasting Disease, federal regulations require all deer in the herd to be tested once they die.

Schultz says Pennsylvania also mandates testing of half of deer captured in hunting preserves.

Long rifle hunting season for deer starts December first.