The Idaho Department of Fish and Game has disease in free-ranging wildlife as one of its high priorities. The Wildlife Health Laboratory, within the Wildlife Bureau, is the primary group that deals with wildlife disease in the state.
Disease in wildlife can affect individual animals, groups of animals or whole populations of animals. Information about the presence of diseases in wildlife populations is obtained by conducting surveillance for various diseases as part of routine health monitoring of animals that Idaho Fish & Game personnel handle or collection of samples from hunter killed animals at check stations or requests for samples. Additional information is obtained by conducting necropsy examinations of dead animals submitted to the Wildlife Health Laboratory by Idaho Fish & Game personnel and the public.
Knowledge about disease in wildlife in important for the management of populations, especially those diseases that can have significant negative impacts. In addition, some diseases in wildlife can affect domestic animals or humans.
The information in this section is designed to provide basic information about several diseases found in wildlife that are considered either important from a population perspective or that could be important if they were found in Idaho. Some of these diseases are considered to be zoonotic, or capable of being spread from animals to humans. Cautionary notes for humans that may interact with wildlife are included to minimize any potential threats to human health from these disease agents.
For additional information, contact the Idaho Fish & Game Wildlife Health Laboratory at (208) 939-9171.
Disease Information for Idaho Wildlife
- Wildlife Health Information Sharing Partnership - All wildlife, disease incidents nationwide
- Echinococcus granulosus - Wolves, dogs, coyotes, foxes, deer, elk, moose, sheep, cattle
- Brucellosis - Bison, sheep, goats, cattle, elk, pigs, caribou, dogs
- Chronic Wasting Disease - Mule deer, white tailed deer, fallow deer, elk, moose
- Avian Influenza - Ducks, geese, swans, domestic poultry
- West Nile Virus - Crows, jays, magpies, sage-grouse, hawks, owls, eagles, humans, horses, mountain goats, dogs
- Epizootic Hemorrhagic Disease - Mule deer, white-tailed deer, elk, moose, reindeer
- Exotic Lice - Mule deer, white-tailed deer
- Rabies - Mammals
- White-nose Syndrome - Bats
- Tapeworm Cysts - Deer, Elk, Moose and Rabbits
- Plague Information - A bacterial disease of rodents
- Disease Precautions for Hunters - American Veterinary Medical Association
- Hunter Health - Infectious Disease Risks & How to Avoid Them - Idaho Dept of Health and Welfare
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