A Quebec farm has been placed under quarantine after an animal that was raised there was diagnosed with chronic wasting disease, a degenerative disease that affects deer, elk and other cervid mammals.

This is the first time the disease has been documented in the province.

Quebec's Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food discovered the infected animal in the Laurentians region, north of Montreal, during an inspection of a slaughterhouse.

The animal was put down, and its meat didn't go into the slaughterhouse's food processing line, the ministry said in a statement released on Friday.

Quebec's Ministry of Forests, Fauna and Parks has called on hunters to be vigilant and help contain the spread of the disease.

The ministry said it's also checking the condition of wild animals that may have come into contact with the domesticated animals on the farm in question.

Chronic wasting disease has been discovered in mule deer, white-tailed deer and elk — both in the wild and at farms — in 13 U.S. states, as well as in Saskatchewan and Alberta.

The disease, which has no known cure in animals, affects their nervous systems. It can be transmitted between animals through their saliva or through contact with their urine and feces.

There is no evidence to suggest the disease can be transmitted to humans, the CFIA says.

Quebec officials are working with the CFIA to determine the source of the disease. They say additional measures have been taken to ensure it's contained.