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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.
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. 26, 2023, 158 mule deer and four 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 |
|---|---|
| Mountain Dell Reservoir exit, westbound I-80 and U.S. Highway 65 | Oct. 21–23, from roughly 9 a.m. to dusk |
| Mountain Green Rest Area, westbound I-84 | Oct. 21–23, from roughly 9 a.m. to dusk |
| West of Kamas, Highway 248 at the Browns Canyon pull-off | Oct. 21–22, from roughly 9 a.m. to dusk |
| DWR Ogden office 515 E. 5300 South Ogden, UT 84405 |
Oct. 23–27 and 30, from 2 to 5 p.m. (By appointment only. Call 801-476-2740 to make an appointment.) |
Tests are free for deer harvested from the Morgan-South Rich, East Canyon and Chalk Creek 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. 23–27, from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. (By appointment only. Call 435-781-9453 to make an appointment.) |
| Near Strawberry Reservoir, at the junction of U.S. Highway 40 and Co-op Creek Road (between mile markers 41 and 42) | Oct. 21–23, from roughly 9 a.m. to dark |
| Just north of Vernal on U.S. Highway 191 at the Steinaker Reservoir rest stop, near mile marker 358 | Oct. 21–23, from roughly 9 a.m. to dark |
| In Manila on SR 43, between 100 West and 200 West | Oct. 21–23, from roughly 9 a.m. to dark |
Tests are free for deer harvested from the South Slope, Yellowstone; South Slope, Bonanza/Vernal; South Slope, Diamond Mtn; Nine Mile, Anthro; and Wasatch Mtns, East 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. 21–23, from roughly 9 a.m. to dark |
| Santaquin (I-15 exit 242 on the east side of highway) | Oct. 21–23, from 9 a.m. to dark |
| DWR Springville office 1115 N. Main St. Springville, UT 84663 |
Oct. 24–27 (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. 24–27 (By appointment only. Call 385-835-2729 to make an appointment.) |
Tests are free for deer harvested from the Wasatch Mtns, West and East; the Central Mtns, Manti and Nebo; and the Oquirrh-Stansbury 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. 23–27, from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. (By appointment only. Call 435-613-3700 to make an appointment.) |
| For the Nine Mile unit: Miller's Travel Center in Wellington (at the junction of State Route 6 and the Nine Mile Canyon Road) | Oct. 21–23, from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. |
| For the Central Mtns, Manti unit: Spanish Fork Canyon (near the Covered Bridge community) | Oct. 21–23, from 9 a.m. to dark |
Tests are free for deer harvested from the Nine Mile, Range Creek and Central Mtns, Manti 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. |
| I-15 Scipio exit (on the east side of I-15) | Oct. 21–22, from 10 a.m. to dark |
Call one of the phone numbers listed in the email sent to hunters with permits for the Beaver, Fillmore and Southwest Desert hunting units.
Tests are free for deer harvested from the Southwest Desert, Beaver and Fillmore/Pahvant and Oak Creek 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
- Four-Point Meat Processing at 81 W. 200 South in Monticello
If you have questions, please contact a Division office.
