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Update:
The CWD check station in northeastern Utah at the Nobletts Trailhead along state Route 35 has been canceled, due to concerns from the Yellow Lake Fire.
Deer check stations for chronic wasting disease
The Utah Division of Wildlife Resources needs your cooperation.
Hunters will play an important role in chronic wasting disease (CWD) surveillance happening this year at Utah Division of Wildlife Resources check stations. During the first few days of the rifle hunt, we will be collecting deer tissue samples at a number of check stations across the state. Successful hunters who have harvested deer from this season's CWD sampling areas may bring tissue samples to be tested for CWD free of charge. Hunters who wish to test deer harvested from other units may send the deer's head to the Utah Veterinary Diagnostic Lab in Logan or Spanish Fork and pay a $25 lab fee.
Download a map of the chronic wasting disease sampling areas for the 2024–25 hunting season.
When you stop at a check station, agency staff will:
- Take lymph nodes from your deer (you will need to leave about 6 inches of the animal's neck and windpipe attached below the jaw so that we can remove the lymph nodes for the sample)
- Ask you a few questions, including the location where the deer was harvested
The entire process will take a few minutes, and your cooperation will help us monitor the disease and study its impact on the state's deer herds. Testing results will be available for you to view online within six weeks of sampling.
Chronic wasting disease — a degenerative neurological disease that affects deer, elk and moose — was first detected in Utah in 2002. As of Sept. 20, 2024, 262 mule deer and six elk have tested positive for CWD. Learn more about the disease and where it has been found in Utah.
Although there isn't proof that CWD poses a risk for human health, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention does not recommend the consumption of animals that test positive for CWD.
Check station locations
You can get your deer checked at the following locations during the hunting season:
Northern Utah
| Location | Dates and times |
|---|---|
| Mouth of Logan Canyon | Oct. 19–20, from roughly 9 a.m. to dusk |
| Mouth of Blacksmith Fork Canyon | Oct. 19–20, from roughly 9 a.m. to dusk |
| DWR Ogden office 515 E. 5300 South Ogden, UT 84405 |
Oct. 21–25 and 28 (By appointment only. Call 801-476-2740 to make an appointment.) |
Tests are free for deer harvested from the Cache, Ogden and East Canyon units. Call the DWR Ogden office at 801-476-2740 for more information.
Northeastern Utah
| Location | Dates and times |
|---|---|
| DWR Vernal office 318 N. Vernal Ave. Vernal, UT 84078 |
Oct. 21–25, from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. (By appointment only. Call 435-781-9453 to schedule an appointment.) |
| Just north of Vernal on U.S. Highway 191 at the Steinaker Reservoir rest stop, near mile marker 358 | Oct. 19–20, from roughly 9 a.m. to dark |
Tests are free for deer harvested from the Yellowstone, Bonanza/Vernal, Diamond Mtn., Nine Mile and Book Cliffs units. Call the DWR Vernal office at 435-781-9453 for more information.
Central Utah
| Location | Dates and times |
|---|---|
| Spanish Fork Canyon (near the Covered Bridge community) | Oct. 19–21, from roughly 9 a.m. to dark |
| DWR Springville office 1115 N. Main St. Springville, UT 84663 |
Oct. 22–25 (By appointment only. Call 801-491-5678 to make an appointment.) |
| DWR Salt Lake office 1594 W. North Temple Salt Lake City, UT 84116 |
Oct. 22–25 (By appointment only. Call 385-835-2729 to make an appointment.) |
Tests are free for deer harvested from the Central Mtns, Manti and Central Mtns, Nebo unit. Call the DWR Springville office at 801-491-5678 for more information.
Southeastern Utah
| Location | Dates and times |
|---|---|
| DWR Price office 319 N. Carbonville Road Suite A Price, UT 84501 |
Oct. 21–25 and 28, from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. (By appointment only. Call 435-613-3700 to make an appointment.) |
| Miller's Travel Center in Wellington (at the junction of State Route 6 and Nine Mile Canyon Road) | Oct. 19–21, from 10 a.m. to dark |
| La Sal Junction (intersection of U.S. Highway 191 and State Route 46) |
Oct. 19–21, from 10 a.m. to dark |
Tests are free for deer harvested from the Manti/San Rafael; La Sal, La Sal Mnts.; San Juan, Abajo Mnts and Nine Mile units. Call the DWR Price office at 435-613-3700 for more information.
Southern Utah
| Location | Dates and times |
|---|---|
| DWR Cedar City office 1470 N. Airport Road Cedar City, UT 84721 |
By appointment only. Call 435-865-6100 to make an appointment. |
| Sand Ledges on State Route 24, mile marker 21 | Oct. 19–20, from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. |
You can also call a regional biologist to collect a sample if you have a permit for the sample hunting units.
Tests are free for deer harvested from the Monroe, Fishlake, Thousand Lakes, Boulder/Kaiparowits, Mt Dutton and Pine Valley units. Call the DWR Cedar City office at 435-865-6100 for more information.
Additional options
We will periodically have personnel available during the first few days of the hunt, or you can drop off a head during the season at one of the following meat lockers:
- Ungerman's Meats at 790 N. 400 East in Huntington
- JC Meats at 3540 S. Highway 6 in Price
If you have questions, please contact a Division office.
