What would you do

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fingers284

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Yesterday afternoon the wife & I were watching a movie when I caught a movement out across the yard, about a dozen Mule does and this years fawns had come to visit & feed on the Canola stubble showing thru the snow cover we have. Not unusual for our yard at all, they fed for 1/2 hr and then moved off across the field.
about an hour or more later I noticed another deer coming in the yard at the same place, this time a rather large full mature buck. The other noticeable thing was he had a VERY pronounced limp on one back leg. He was having extreme difficulties even ambling along, he was over an hour behind his girl friends traveling the same trail. After watching him for 10 minutes one of my thoughts were that I should just put him out of his misery....but I didnt.
Now I cant help thinking I condemned that ol' guy to a very miserable last days when January cold and deep snow slowly freeze & starve him to death.
Two things kept me from doing a coupe-de- grace on him...the fact that he was probably fevered up from the injury so the meat would have been questionable and killing a deer & not eating it just isnt in my play-book...and the legality percussions (fines) that I would instantly be viable for if I pulled a trigger on him out of season.

What would you have done, or should I do, if he returns to around the yard, a distinct possibility as he aint going far very fast??
 
Call your Alberta Fish & Wildlife Officers, report the injured deer. On occasion, and if the injury appears life threatening, they may give you permission to dispatch the animal. They might come out themselves to investigate. It's really hard to say on where you live exactly and how busy their officers are.

Deer can be very tough, this buck could survive if there is no gangrene or infection.
 
Thunderhog said:
Call your Alberta Fish & Wildlife Officers, report the injured deer. On occasion, and if the injury appears life threatening, they may give you permission to dispatch the animal. They might come out themselves to investigate. It's really hard to say on where you live exactly and how busy their officers are.

Deer can be very tough, this buck could survive if there is no gangrene or infection.
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This... Not a favorite to deal with, but the "right" thing to do, if you feel you have to do something.
As mentioned, deer are pretty tough, and without getting a good look at the injury, it can be really difficult to tell what has happened. If it was caused by a bullet... he would probably be down by now. If he's made it this long, then he'll probably make it the rest of the way.
If he comes around again, and you feel that you should do something, and you're ok with the situation, then do it.

R.
 
Thunderhog said:
Call your Alberta Fish & Wildlife Officers, report the injured deer. On occasion, and if the injury appears life threatening, they may give you permission to dispatch the animal. They might come out themselves to investigate. It's really hard to say on where you live exactly and how busy their officers are.

Deer can be very tough, this buck could survive if there is no gangrene or infection.
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A very well thought out plan.
 
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fingers284 said:
Yesterday afternoon the wife & I were watching a movie when I caught a movement out across the yard, about a dozen Mule does and this years fawns had come to visit & feed on the Canola stubble showing thru the snow cover we have. Not unusual for our yard at all, they fed for 1/2 hr and then moved off across the field.
about an hour or more later I noticed another deer coming in the yard at the same place, this time a rather large full mature buck. The other noticeable thing was he had a VERY pronounced limp on one back leg. He was having extreme difficulties even ambling along, he was over an hour behind his girl friends traveling the same trail. After watching him for 10 minutes one of my thoughts were that I should just put him out of his misery....but I didnt.
Now I cant help thinking I condemned that ol' guy to a very miserable last days when January cold and deep snow slowly freeze & starve him to death.
Two things kept me from doing a coupe-de- grace on him...the fact that he was probably fevered up from the injury so the meat would have been questionable and killing a deer & not eating it just isnt in my play-book...and the legality percussions (fines) that I would instantly be viable for if I pulled a trigger on him out of season.

What would you have done, or should I do, if he returns to around the yard, a distinct possibility as he aint going far very fast??
Click to expand...
It might end up okay, and if it isn't okay, Crows, wolves and coyotes need to eat too. If it was me I'd let nature take it's course. Just my 2 cents.
 
Jahnj0584 said:
i would never do anything illegal!
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In some instances, what is right, what is legal and illegal, don't always line up. Those decisions are always up to individuals that have to make them, their operating rules, and their own conscience.
Lots of really good folks have done illegal things, because it was the right thing to do.

R.
 
Thunderhog said:
Call your Alberta Fish & Wildlife Officers, report the injured deer. On occasion, and if the injury appears life threatening, they may give you permission to dispatch the animal. They might come out themselves to investigate. It's really hard to say on where you live exactly and how busy their officers are.

Deer can be very tough, this buck could survive if there is no gangrene or infection.
Click to expand...
I’ve done this in bc and they were completely useless unfortunately, by the time I had been in touch with them the doe in question had slipped off into private property. Home owners were not home as well, she had a broken front leg and the opposite rear leg was shattered as well. I should’ve just shot her while she was on the small section of crown land and not tried to contact the CO’s, never again will I call them for advice.
 
Butcherbill said:
I’ve done this in bc and they were completely useless unfortunately, by the time I had been in touch with them the doe in question had slipped off into private property. Home owners were not home as well, she had a broken front leg and the opposite rear leg was shattered as well. I should’ve just shot her while she was on the small section of crown land and not tried to contact the CO’s, never again will I call them for advice.
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Unfortunately. that is becoming more and more folks experience. They don't do themselves any favours.

R..
 
Rman said:
Unfortunately. that is becoming more and more folks experience. They don't do themselves any favours.

R..
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To compound the problem my region has like 2 CO’s in total to deal with it all, they’re over stretched which probably doesn’t help with responding to things but this is the second time I’ve called them looking for help and been blown off.
 
Butcherbill said:
I’ve done this in bc and they were completely useless unfortunately, by the time I had been in touch with them the doe in question had slipped off into private property. Home owners were not home as well, she had a broken front leg and the opposite rear leg was shattered as well. I should’ve just shot her while she was on the small section of crown land and not tried to contact the CO’s, never again will I call them for advice.
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Like Rman said, sometimes you have to make a judgement call. As a retired police officer and Natural Resource Officer, my thoughts would have been to dispatch an animal that was injured so severely.

Now I'm not your lawyer, I'm just saying what I would have done in that instance......:)
 
I would probably let nature take it's course. Some of them don't survive the rut and the onset of winter or have run ins with predators and get injured as they escape.
Like the case of this mule deer doe that showed up in my back wood lot late season 3 .... maybe 4 years ago. She was torn up severely. Big claw marks to flesh all down her back to her hinds. She had a large portion of the skin torn open from her mid section across her ribs and belly and up into her left hind quarter. The meat was exposed and the skin hung from her. It was a grizzly sight and I thought for sure she was going to die back there in the wood lot. Next spring, early while the snow was still around this doe comes in the back yard and one look at her and I knew right away it was the same doe. The claw marks were healed but clearly visible as the fur was not grown in over the scars. We are talking from her shoulder to her ass on both sides. The big portion of skin where she was torn open was gone, replaced by a large scar area that had peach fuzz looking hair. She walked really stiff on her back legs.... like she was constipated looking.... but she was still able to jump a 4ft fence. I couldn't believe an animal could suffer such severe trauma and live thru a BC interior winter. She has been a regular off and on every year since and though her scars are still visible, the hair eventually grew in evenly by the following year. No vet, no medical interventions by humans or CO's...... just nature taking it's course.
 
Thunderhog said:
Like Rman said, sometimes you have to make a judgement call. As a retired police officer and Natural Resource Officer, my thoughts would have been to dispatch an animal that was injured so severely.

Now I'm not your lawyer, I'm just saying what I would have done in that instance......:)
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If it had been a bit further out of town I would’ve put her out of her misery, which was obvious. Proximity to private land and the amount of citiots we have had buying property since Fauvid makes me think twice about doing what I know is the right thing, in the end a coyote or bear ate well. Just sucks to see an animal in that state, is what it is I guess.
 
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