 Wild deer can make dangerous pets
Posted on: 2003-02-06 by: Travel4Sports Administrator
After two attacks, people realize bucks in rut aren't Disney's Bambi
REPTON, Ala. ? When Carmel Evers was cornered by a deer in his back yard, he took life ? and the deer ? by the horns.
That didn't help. The 80-pound buck wouldn't be moved.
Evers, 78, got knocked over and hurled through the air. His ribs were bruised and his collarbone broken.
"You wouldn't believe how strong it was," Evers said.
But this wasn't a wild, untamed beast fighting for survival in the wild ? it was somebody's pet.
As more residents make pets out of deer, they're finding that it's hard to domesticate them and keep them from harming family or neighbors.
Evers wasn't the only one to become a victim of a deer.
A week earlier and 20 miles away, Gloria McMillan, 61, of Uriah, had a similar encounter with another buck.
"I was in the back yard raking, and had gone to put up the wheelbarrow when I looked up and there was an eight-point buck charging at me," McMillan said of the 160-pound animal. "I was so scared. It was so strong it knocked me to the ground and pushed me along. You can't do anything to stop one."
Pet deer may be even more dangerous than wild deer, conservation officials said. Domesticated deer have been taught not to fear humans and may be more daring. Wild deer attacks are extremely rare.
"Bucks can be just like puppy dogs," said Lee Stribling, a wildlife biologist at the Auburn University school of Forestry and Wildlife Sciences. "But when rut comes along, they lose all remembrances of being a nice, sweet pet. They can kill people, and they have in other states."
In Alabama, people with deer and other unusual pets are required to get permits. Deer owners who don't get permits could face up to $500 in fines and six months in jail, said Allan Andress, assistant chief of the enforcement division of Alabama Wildlife and Freshwater Fisheries.
Deer have become common in subdivisions in some areas but rarely show aggression. Biologists said wild deer enjoy subdivisions because grass and shrubs that make for good landscaping also make ideal deer habitats. And in neighborhoods, there are no predators.
The best way to keep pet male deer tame is to castrate them, Stribling said.
"Better yet, if you're going to raise a pet, keep a female instead," he said.
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