You spend
countless hours tending to your prize flowers and lush gardens. All the sweat
and back breaking pain is all worth it in the end. Everything would be perfect
except for those darn flower eating garden walking deer. How dare they?
More and more
articles about people complaining about deer within city limits causing damage
to their property is getting a bit outrageous. From Duluth down to the city I
live in now, about an hour south of the cities. I read these articles and
can't help but feel sick. Then it gets even better when I get to the comments
section. Usually at this point I'm speaking out loud in frustration.
Many have
been saying how the deer come within city limits looking for a food source and
they must be taught a lesson. People who want to decrease the population
because of a handful of plants. My flowers are being eaten so there is too
many, shoot them. Pretty sad justification. They say if we keep shooting
them they will associate the city with danger. Really, come on folks.
Ok, let me
set this thing straight. The MAIN reason deer concentrate in city limits is
for one thing. Refuge. All critters do it. We just notice deer more.
They may have more contact with humans, but it is in a non threatening way.
Plain and simple, deer are safe in the city. They don't come to the city
looking for tomato plants and lilac bushes. The country food source is far
more plentiful than in the concrete jungle. Why do they eat your flowers
then? Because they are within their refuge, city limits. Deer will eat what
they can to remain safe. Sorry, it is the truth.
Deer numbers
are down. If you don't believe me, go for a walk in one of these supposedly
over populated city parks or take a drive in the evening. I bet you don't see
near the numbers then in past years. Don't get me wrong, it is most definitely
needed from time to time. It needs to be for the right reason though. These
micro ecosystems can only handle a certain deer density, yes. But, are we
doing it for what's best for the deer or what's best for the residents?
I'm sorry to
be the one to have to tell you, but we have to co-exist. If we keep choosing
not to, we wont have a damn thing left. You can count on that. Instead of
complaining about them doing what they do, surviving, perhaps try to enjoy
them. Maybe there's just too many people. Have you ever gone to the State
Fair and blended in with thousands of people in one tiny little spot? Have you
ever seen that many deer in one spot? So what is a healthy human density? Or
do we feel we are not a part of the ecosystem? How many more trees should we
cut down to build more to meet our needs? Why is it OK for us to rapidly
expand and nothing else can? We take, take and take some more. How would you
feel if you came home from work and your neighbor knocked down your house to add
on to his? I'd bet you'd eat his flowers to.
Oh, and one more
thing. I garentee you that rabbits are FAR more destructive to flowers and
gardens than deer out there. I'd also be willing to bet if you have deer crap
in your yard, you have a lot more rabbit crap than deer crap. There is a hell
of a lot more rabbits than deer also. That's it Martha, call the sharp shooters,
them rabbits are going down.