The Zombie Deer Disease meme stems from real-world reports of Chronic Wasting Disease (CWD), a prion infection that leaves deer disoriented and emaciated. While the condition has been known to scientists for decades, it gained massive internet notoriety as social media users drew parallels between the infected wildlife and tropes from popular media like 'The Last of Us' or 'The Walking Dead.' These memes often use sensationalized news headlines or eerie photos of deer to joke about the impending zombie apocalypse. The trend serves as a form of dark humor, where users vent their anxieties about global health crises and environmental shifts through the lens of pop-culture horror.