AUSTIN – The Texas Parks and Wildlife Department, Texas Animal Health Commission and Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service have partnered to coordinate chronic wasting disease postmortem sample collector trainings in the Panhandle and Trans-Pecos.  As part of the state’s increased CWD surveillance, we are providing the opportunity for landowners/managers, taxidermists, and veterinarians to be trained to collect tissues for disease testing under TAHC’s Certified CWD Postmortem Sample Collector training program.

This will be a classroom format as well as hands on training for sample collection.  Trained individuals will then be able to sample harvested CWD susceptible species such as white-tailed deer, mule deer, elk, red deer, sika, etc. on their properties. Trained individuals will also be able to sample harvested CWD susceptible species for other hunters and provide those samples to TPWD for CWD testing to meet mandatory testing requirements in the Panhandle and Trans-Pecos CWD Zones.  Individuals who participated last year must also attend this year’s training to receive necessary check station supplies.  Space is limited to the first 50 participants for each training and registration is mandatory to attend.  Interested participants are urged to sign up as soon as possible.

Upcoming training classes:

Amarillo

 AgriLife Extension Building, 6500 W Amarillo Blvd

9 AM – 12 PM on Sept 26 

Van Horn

Van Horn Convention Center, 1801 W Broadway St

9 AM – 12 PM on Nov 18

Please contact Laura Leal with TAHC at (512) 650-0475 or laura.leal@tahc.texas.gov to sign up for the trainings.

Please visit www.tpwd.texas.gov/cwd and www.tahc.state.tx.us/animal_health/elk-deer/ for more information about CWD, CWD management, and new CWD regulations.