fallow deer

[bignoel]

on one of my permissions i have noticed there is a lot of 3 legged fallow deer .i know they have run in's with cars but there seems to be rather a lot of them on 3 legs .

[WGD]

Are they 3 legged as in no leg at all, or do they look like amputees?

[rodp]

Is it somebody poaching a bit at a time hoping they will not be noticed.

[bignoel]

three legged as in amputee as thay are off at different parts of leg it can be either back or front legs just seems strange to see so many of them with only three legs in one area .i shot a few last year and there condition was poor ? atb noel

[vampire]

Is it somebody poaching a bit at a time hoping they will not be noticed.

 

Best way to keep the meat fresh,just eat a bit at a time

[Paddy Galore!]

Maybe the rspca are releasing them nearby. wish they'd release some my way..

[scarecrow243]

have you not seen that tv rescue program where they set them free after they have been opperated on

[dodeer]

Wire fences more likely.....

[bignoel]

pretty sure its not rspca as its a shooting estate next door has to be wire fences but they are very rare only for barbed wire here and there .it amaze's me how any animal can lose a leg and survive without treatment

[njc110381]

To have such a high number suggests that there's somewhere local that they keep getting stuck? Perhaps a crossing point on a fence that has a bit of a bend in it or a big old pile of wire somewhere that nobody's noticed?

 

Wildlife is tough. They haven't been wrapped in cotton wool all their lives like us and I guess their immune system is just a little more up to the task? You'd think they'd bleed to death though?

[WGD]

To have such a high number suggests that there's somewhere local that they keep getting stuck? Perhaps a crossing point on a fence that has a bit of a bend in it or a big old pile of wire somewhere that nobody's noticed?

 

Or illegal trapping? Being hung up on wire fences is the most common cause of amputations but to have so many in one area is unusual.

[docholiday]

Difficult to be certain but bet it is double stranded barbed wire, we are constantly releasing, / dispatching deer caught in this stuff, if left they will either die or amputate the leg.

doc

Edited May 18, 2010 by docholiday

[Popgun]

Sheep wire with a strand of barbed wire about 4" above it we had it here with Roe.

[bignoel]

i think the sheep wire double strand barbed wire could be the cause of it then as there is a lot of that about further down the road from the permission :blink:

[Richie10]

Animals are tougher than you think, there are enough 3 legged foxes about.

[Tommo]

Bignoel,

 

If l was you l'd wait for the season to come in, then put one down. But then check it for VET work/surgery because if it has been given treatment it would have been given immobilium or something equally leathal if entered into the food chain.

 

On inspection, you should check them for bullet wounds (very common in highly poached areas - or areas where the continentals shoot ((ooops did l just say that!!))) splintered/sharp ends should tell the tail...

 

On another note, when you observe them do they look in pain? (fuss with the stump?) What condition are the animals in? Thin and ragg'ed? or normal? We shot some roe does like this in the winter two had missing front legs, one was suffering (fence job) other absolutely fine - (stray bullet by another on local shoot - which we knew about).

 

Always interested in deer behavour/welfare -

 

Tom

[bignoel]

one i shot was in very poor condition indeed it was only fit for the fire .another when dressed out i found what looked like stringy metal fileings [sp] in the meat there does,nt appear to be any surgical work carried out as they are rough amputee's and so far it has been all fallow non to the roe so far as i know .