State officials are asking for help from hunters to control the spread of a deadly deer disease.

Chronic Wasting Disease is a fatal neurological illness that spreads among deer through infected body fluids.

The North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission is now changing hunting regulations in areas where it’s been detected, including Forsyth, Stokes, Surry, Wilkes and Yadkin counties.

Wildlife Health Biologist Miranda Turner says officials are introducing a new antlered deer season in late August, and opening blackpowder season one week early — well before breeding season begins.

“If we can kind of reduce the sick deer on the landscape before they disperse, before they move and infect a ton of other deer, that is ideal," said Turner.

The agency is also implementing new statewide requirements for disposing of deer carcasses to prevent transmission.

Chronic Wasting Disease was first detected in North Carolina in 2022, but Turner says its prevalence remains relatively low. She estimates fewer than 5% of deer in affected counties are infected.