The Iron County Board of Supervisors will decide soon whether to ban deer farms

The Iron County Board of Supervisors will decide soon whether to ban deer farms following the Iron county planning and zoning committees recommended. The move is an attempt to prevent chronic wasting disease from entering Iron County’s deer population. There are at least 55 CWD-affected counties in the state, meaning they either have had a deer test positive within their borders or are within 10 miles of a positive deer. There are no reported cases of humans being infected with CWD. Iron County is one of the few counties in the state without an active deer farm, and while the county is unaware of any plans to open one, the moratorium is an effort to be proactive. Wisconsin’s first CWD-positive deer was tested in 2002, according to the state’s Department of Natural Resources, after being killed in the November 2001 hunting season. The fatal CWD brain disease affects deer, elk, reindeer, and moose. There is no known cure once animals are infected, and symptoms include weight loss, stumbling, drooling and aggression.