We challenged reindeer by the intracranial route with the agent of chronic wasting disease sourced from white-tailed deer, mule deer, or elk and tested for horizontal transmission to naive reindeer. Reindeer were susceptible to chronic wasting disease regardless of source species. Horizontal transmission occurred through direct contact or indirectly through the environment.
Keywords: brain; cervid; chronic wasting disease; horizontal transmission; prions; reindeer; transmissible spongiform encephalopathy.