February 28th, 2013 by Anja Heister
IDA is part of a coalition of dedicated Washington residents and attorneys fighting the National Park Service’s plan to kill deer in Rock Creek Park
Please help us by signing this petition!
The tranquil and historic Rock Creek Park in Washington, DC has been a safe place for native deer for more than 120 years, until now.
The National Park Service (NPS) has recently ordered the killing of half of the park’s 314 deer, allegedly to protect native plant species. But the agency’s own records show that there is no overpopulation, and no need for such drastic and inhumane measures.
If the brutal NPS plan is not stopped, deer will be shot with guns and bows after being lured to piles of grain, apples and hay. Others would be killed after capturing them with nets and shooting them in the head with penetrating steel captive-bolt guns.
Bow hunting has an over 50% wounding rate, and many deer run off to die a painful, prolonged death. Deer trapped under a net frequently break their legs while thrashing frantically and screaming in terror. Sometimes the bolt-gun is misfired into the eye, jaw, ear or nose – the agent must reload the bolt gun to try again. Death from the bolt-gun is often not immediate, adding more prolonged suffering for the already terrified animals.
Your voice is important! Please sign this petition to urge the NPS to abandon their cruel plan for a deer massacre and, instead, to fulfill their mandate of protecting Rock Creek Park’s resident deer.
YA well. I am a 13 year old hunter from Ora Vally Arizona and i hunt. Humans have been hunting since the dawn of time. deer hunting is part of nature and life. My whole family hunts and then we eat the meat. Not only do the tax from our tag and guns go to protecting animals but we also help keep the population of verm (rabbits) and some predators (coyotes) under control. Good hunters follow the rules such as myself and i think you are making a bad desison by saying hunting is bad cause a few hunter are stupit. That squirral shoting contest sounds fun and you get prizes for killing animals. that is awesome. so f**k you and your website cause hunting is the right thing to do.
P.S. i have three dogs, a snake, a cat and i love them dearly. So you can’t say i don’t love animals.
Love your mom
As the Vice-President of Wildlife Rescue, Inc. in Maryland, I know only too well how people become frustrated with our wildlife. I feel there is never a reason to kill animals that were here long before we built our homes on their land. There is always a humane answer to any wildlife problem and educating people about wildlife will better serve everyone. Killing deer will not solve the deer overpopulation problem and is only a short sited answer. If there is food available, new deer will just move in. Predators are certainly not the answer. No one wants wolves in their back yard! Go to http://www.wildliferesueinc.org to learn about our non-lethal deer sterilization project in Maryland. For learning about living with the deer go to http://www.deersolutionsmd.com. Deer do not cause Lyme Disease and I find it hard to believe that a child was run over by a deer!
I am still trying to sign the Petition.
Try living within the zone of Rock Creek Park and then tell me there isn’t overpopulation. The deer invade every yard, at all hours. We’ve had dogs injured, we’ve seen more people get Lyme disease (remember, deer are disease vectors folks), and a child down the street from us was run over by a deer while waiting for the bus on the sidewalk. This is ridiculous.
Please tell me where ya’ll live so we can replant all these deer in YOUR neighborhood.
Oh, and they are absolutely destroying the flora of the park. Moreover, there doesn’t appear to be enough food, since lots of them look pretty sickly and ribs sticking out for large parts of the year.
If deer looked like naked mole rats on legs, no way people would be this up in arms about culling them.
I live in DC and would be interested in attending the court proceedings. When and Where are they being held?
I keep trying to sign the petition but it doesn’t work
Signed!
Signed and shared!
Signed petition and shared. Enough killing. I hate hunters. I hope some day someone hunts them.
signed
signed, and Christine I agree with you !
Yes indeed! If humans had ‘butted out’ and left nature alone, there would still be enough predators to keep a sustainable balance – instead there is an ongoing insane ‘witch hunt’ to try to exterminate every wolf in America! – So, they kill the wolves and now they kill the deer! – Totally brilliant!
signed
If there is an overpopulation problem maybe they could establish a few of their natural enemies just to keep the balance. Wolves?
direct link to petition above
http://www.change.org/petitions/tell-montgomery-county-park-police-to-stop-wounding-and-killing-resident-deer