NEW YORK STATE (WUTR/WFXV/WPNY) -- The Department of Environmental Conservation is asking hunters in the Mohawk Valley to help them combat Chronic Wasting Disease.

In a statement released on Thursday, October 16, the DEC is asking for samples of deer from across the Mohawk Valley after the presence of the disease last year at a captive deer facility in the town of Columbia. The disease affects deer and moose and targets the nervous system of an affected animal.

After the case in Columbia, the DEC sampled 196 deer in the surrounding area and found no sign of the disease.

During the Deer hunting season, which begins on Saturday, October 25 in New York State, the DEC will be sampling deer for the disease in five Herkimer County towns and the town of Richfield in Otsego County. Hunters will

See Full Page