Where to Get a Deer Tested for CWD in Michigan (2026)

Updated October 22, 2026

Chronic wasting disease (CWD) testing in Michigan is free in 2026 for most hunters, but how you get it depends on the county your deer came from. Everything below comes from the Michigan DNR and the MSU Veterinary Diagnostic Laboratory pages linked beside each fact. Locations can change during the season, so call before you drive.

Step 1 for everyone: report your harvest first

• The DNR says a harvest report must be completed before you submit a sample for CWD testing. ^[source] The same report is required before you hand the deer to a processor. ^[source] See how to report your deer harvest.

Option A: free head drop-off (Ionia, Kent, Mecosta, Montcalm, Newaygo)

In 2026 the DNR is doing focused CWD collection in Ionia, Kent, Mecosta, Montcalm and Newaygo counties. Testing is free for deer from these counties when the head goes in through a DNR drop box or staffed site, and every head is also screened for bovine tuberculosis. ^[source] The DNR last sampled this area intensively in 2019 and is returning to measure how common CWD is there now. ^[source]

24/7 drop boxes, open now through Jan. 4: ^[source]

• Haymarsh Hunt Club, 11959 Jefferson Road, Morley, MI 49336
• Kent County Road Commission, 1900 4 Mile Road, Walker, MI 49544
• Paris DNR Field Office, 22250 Northland Drive, Paris, MI 49338
• Flat River DNR Field Office, 6650 Long Lake Road, Belding, MI 48838

Staffed, in-person drop-off at the Paris and Flat River field offices, 9 a.m. to 4 p.m., on Mondays Oct. 19 and 26; Mondays Nov. 2, 9 and 16; Thursday Nov. 19; Saturday Nov. 21; Mondays Nov. 23 and 30; and Mondays Dec. 7, 14 and 21. ^[source]

Before you go: remove the head before visiting a sample site, and take the antlers off the head if you want to keep them. ^[source] Results can take 6 to 8 weeks and are posted at Michigan.gov/DNRLab. If your deer tests positive, the DNR notifies you by letter or phone and you're eligible for a replacement antlerless deer license. ^[source] The DNR's full map of sample sites (including some processors and taxidermists that take heads) is on its deer stations page.

Option B: free mail-in kit (all other counties)

Hunters in the rest of the state can get free CWD testing with a free lymph node shipping kit that includes overnight shipping. You cut out the lymph nodes yourself and send them to the MSU Veterinary Diagnostic Laboratory. Results come straight to you from the lab and won't appear on the DNR results page. ^[source] MSU has a lymph node extraction video and instructions; samples the lab can't test aren't refunded, so follow them closely. ^[source]

Don't cut lymph nodes from deer taken in these TB-risk counties: Alcona, Alpena, Cheboygan, Crawford, Iosco, Montmorency, Ogemaw, Oscoda, Otsego, Presque Isle or Roscommon. Take the head to a DNR wildlife field office instead and ask for CWD testing along with TB testing. ^[source]

Where to pick up a free kit

From the DNR's kit list (counties served, location, address, phone). The DNR asks you to call before arriving so someone is there to help. ^[source]

Option C: pay a lab directly

• You can skip the free kit and send samples to a USDA-approved lab for a fee; the DNR lists MSU's lab and the Wisconsin Veterinary Diagnostic Laboratory. Results are emailed to you. ^[source]
• MSU's lab accepts whole heads only as a walk-up drop-off, Monday to Friday, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., with $70 paid at drop-off. Heads should be double-bagged in leak-proof bags with the kill tag attached and delivered within 1 to 2 days of harvest, or frozen until then. Online ordering isn't available for whole heads. ^[source]
• MSU asks hunters in a DNR CWD or TB surveillance county to use the DNR's free route instead; if you go to MSU directly you pay the test and shipping fees. ^[source]

Why it matters for your processor

• Donating a deer? The DNR requires a CWD test before donation for deer from Allegan, Clinton, Dickinson, Eaton, Genesee, Gladwin, Gratiot, Hillsdale, Ingham, Ionia, Isabella, Jackson, Kent, Mecosta, Montcalm, Midland, Ogemaw and Washtenaw counties. ^[source] See how to donate a deer for participating processors.
• CWD has not been shown to spread to people, according to the DNR. ^[source] If you want test results before eating the meat, ask your processor whether they'll hold or label your deer; that varies by shop, so call ahead.

Find a processor in your county

• Alcona (1)
• Allegan (5)
• Alpena (1)
• Antrim (1)
• Arenac (3)
• Baraga (1)
• Barry (3)
• Bay (4)
• Berrien (2)
• Branch (4)
• Calhoun (4)
• Cass (4)
• Charlevoix (2)
• Cheboygan (1)
• Chippewa (3)
• Clare (3)
• Clinton (8)
• Crawford (2)
• Delta (2)
• Eaton (3)
• Emmet (1)
• Genesee (6)
• Gladwin (3)
• Gogebic (1)
• Grand Traverse (5)
• Gratiot (5)
• Hillsdale (2)
• Huron (1)
• Ingham (5)
• Ionia (8)
• Iosco (4)
• Iron (1)
• Isabella (5)
• Jackson (5)
• Kalamazoo (4)
• Kent (5)
• Lapeer (6)
• Leelanau (1)
• Lenawee (3)
• Livingston (5)
• Macomb (6)
• Manistee (2)
• Marquette (2)
• Mason (4)
• Mecosta (4)
• Menominee (4)
• Midland (4)
• Missaukee (1)
• Monroe (17)
• Montcalm (12)
• Montmorency (1)
• Muskegon (3)
• Newaygo (2)
• Oakland (5)
• Oceana (2)
• Ogemaw (6)
• Ontonagon (1)
• Osceola (10)
• Oscoda (2)
• Otsego (4)
• Ottawa (2)
• Presque Isle (3)
• Roscommon (2)
• Saginaw (6)
• Sanilac (5)
• Schoolcraft (1)
• Shiawassee (6)
• St. Clair (6)
• St. Joseph (3)
• Tuscola (7)
• Van Buren (4)
• Washtenaw (3)
• Wayne (5)
• Wexford (2)

Sources

• https://www.michigan.gov/dnr/managing-resources/wildlife/wildlife-disease/disease-monitoring/cwd/cwd-testing
• https://www.michigan.gov/dnr/about/newsroom/releases/2026/10/12/dnr-asks-southwest-michigan-hunters-to-get-deer-tested-for-cwd
• https://www.michigan.gov/dnr/things-to-do/hunting/deer/deer-stations-disease-sample
• https://cvm.msu.edu/vdl/news/2026/cwd-testing-for-michigan-hunters
• https://www.michigan.gov/dnr/about/get-involved/hunters-feeding-michigan/where-to-donate-deer
• https://www.michigan.gov/dnr/things-to-do/hunting/harvest-reporting