With the coronavirus pandemic continuing on, the landscape is constantly changing, and one new development shouldn’t have people worried. 

Dallas County Health Department Public Information Officer Ann Cochran says Iowa’s deer population has been shown to contract COVID-19 infections but she says humans haven’t contracted the virus from deer. 

“Although deer can contract COVID-19, there have been no instances of spread from a deer to a human. We are keeping tabs on this. The USDA, as well as the Department of Natural Resources, and the local conservation folks are keeping an eye on this, there has been no reports at all of people getting COVID because of contact with deer.”

Cochran tells Raccoon Valley Radio that even though humans haven’t gotten COVID-19 from deer, there are other diseases that humans can potentially get when handling wild game meat and she shares a few reminders for people. 

“Handle things carefully. No matter what, a good practice is to avoid cutting through the backbone and the spinal tissues and the brain of wildlife. Those are parts of the animal that are very likely to contain diseases if there is any present in that animal.”

Cochran says another thing people should remember is to wash their hands or wear gloves when handling game or cleaning it.