Concern for injured deer

A local animal activist is concerned after an injured deer and its fawn were left to fend for themselves by the highway in Penticton.

Theresa Nolet claims the doe had a badly broken leg, and neither conservation nor the RCMP would put the animal out of its misery and let her take the fawn to a rescue centre.

"There are many ways this could have played out, and it  just did not seem sensible that this was left like this," she said.

Nolet said she was driving home around 6 p.m. Monday when she saw a woman sitting on the grass in front of GardenWorks, with a deer and fawn close by

She pulled into the parking lot, and as she got closer it was evident the deer had a badly broken rear leg.

"I went to where the lady, a friend and horse advocate, was sitting, and she told me she had called conservation and they said to leave the deer alone and go home," said Nolet. "That wasn't a good answer for me, and I called the RCMP."

In the past, Nolet added, police have assisted in such situations.

An hour later, an officer arrived and said he would not shoot the deer unless there was an animal organization that would take the fawn.

Nolet says she told the officer about the animal rescue organizations she is involved in and that she had a facility to keep the fawn in overnight before driving it to wherever it needed to go in the morning.

After some discussion, the officer responded that he wasn't going to argue and left.

The doe and fawn then moved off into the bushes and disappeared.

"We were within city limits, and we want to change some of the policies so that when animals are injured in this way they are put out of their misery, and also so that people are not forced to observe this and know animals are dying a long, painful death," said Nolet.

The RCMP and Conservation Officer Service could not be immediately reached for comment.