Of all the things causing a stir these days, I’d reason to say that whacky stories such as this one are somewhat of a breath of fresh air.
Last week the Missouri Department of Conservation responded to reports of a collared deer in the rural community of Festus, southwest of St. Louis. A peculiar photo was circulating in the area that showed a young whitetail buck wearing an oversized dog collar and a label emblazoned across his ribs that read “Pet”.
“Somebody most likely took that deer out of the wild as a fawn and tried to keep it as a pet and put a collar on it,” MDC Captain Scott Corley stated in an article in the Belleville News-Democrat. “[It’s] not safe for humans, and it’s not in the best interest of the animal’s welfare,” he warned.
Last week the Jefferson County Sheriff’s Department also shared the image of the deer, reminding us all that deer and other wild animals are not meant to be pets. The post seemed to have hit a nerve with some followers who claimed that whoever painted the deer was simply trying to protect it from hunters during this year’s hunting seasons.
While it might seem like a worthy crusade to some, wildlife officials clapped back in a press release regarding the incident, stating that people often do more harm than help in these types of situations.
“How would Bambi’s life have turned out if, after his mother’s death, a sympathetic human had taken him in? The ending probably wouldn’t be as happy as you might expect,” the MDC said in a press release. “Abandoned wildlife are typically harmed by human efforts to rescue them. In fact, trying to help these animals generally decreases their chances of survival.”
