Early in the week, Mike noticed that one of our corn stalks was askew; on Thursday, we figured out why: deer. I found hoofprints in the garden beds and noticed that the corn and beans have been munched. I will go to some level of extreme to save the apples and the tomatoes but the rest of the garden this year has been a disappointment so I’m not going to get too bent out of shape.
It’s been quite a year for deer. They are not only becoming more common in the urban areas but they are also getting aggressive. I was horrified earlier this month watching a video of a deer attacking a dog — a video that I think every child needs to see in order to understand that while they are herbivores, deer are not docile (embedded below) — and last week a woman in Gordon Head was charged by a deer while walking her dog.
As with the rabbits on campus, the situation is getting to the point where some people are now calling for a cull. (Honestly, with all the people going hungry in this city, I see no reason that we cannot gather both the rabbits and the deer for meat rather than simply destroying the animals.) However, that opinion does not seem to be popular in our fair city. I get that people don’t like the idea of killing animals; I’m not a huge fan of it myself but there comes a time when officials need to make a decision. The University made theirs (though now apparently they are being challenged with an injunction) and now the City of Victoria needs to step up.