I’d have flown the deer to the Moon, and then shot it into the heart of the Sun. That’s about as practical an idea as yours. Also: getting shot in the head is a better and quicker death than suffocating.
I killed a cat when I was a kid. I think it had been hit by a car. Anyway, its back end was all fucked up and its guts were hanging out. The poor thing was howling, and I crushed its head with a brick. Placed the brick against its head and then stomped it. A particularly vivid childhood memory, particularly the sounds, but it was the right thing to do.
So you would suggest that trying to put a plastic bag over a large animals thrashing head and filling it with
is even an option? You think that is humane? Let me check again. Natural gas, acetylene, butane. Sorry, fresh out.
A shot from behind is much quicker, safer, and way, way more humane. Not to mention that it is actually feasible.
Phlosphr, let us know how this turns out. I’m wondering if DOW or DOT will help you out. Perhaps call Boulder County Animal Control and ask about options. I think I would do that first. They should know what to do, and they will be open on a Saturday.
I think I heard that here in Washington deer killed on the road are collected and given to Indian tribes for meat. I cannot find a cite. Does anyone know?
Ok you’re clearly not getting this. I was answering the question ‘how to kill a suffering deer humanely, without a gun?’.
Hypoxia is not the same as suffocation. It’s even recommended by the AVMA Panel on Euthanasia as a humane means of dispatching animals. It’s really not difficult. Displace the air in a plastic bag, cover the mouth. The deer will lose conciousness in a few 10s of seconds, and dead in a couple of minutes.
Physical damage to the brain requires skill, adequate restraint and appropriate force. If you don’t apply it properly, then it’s not humane or effective. A deer skull is more robust than that of a cat. That’s why I recommended hypoxia as the most appropriate method, given the stipulations, and without access to drugs. I’ve already said personally I’d use the vet, which really is the most humane choice. If a gun was available I’d use that in preference, but without one this is the next best thing.
I’m pretty damn certain then American VETERINARY Medical Association doesn’t commonly deal with wounded wild deer or attempt to manhandle a plastic bag filled with inert gas over its head. Which, y’know, people don’t generally carry around. It’s a goddamn crazy idea, and it was weird that you even brought it up. A small animal in a vet clinic is a far different beast (so to speak…). Even a wounded deer can hurt you very badly.
No, you are not getting this. The OP did have a gun. There is no need for restraint of the animal when you can shoot it from a foot away. The OP asked a specific question, in a time of need. You are trying to answer a different question.
Attempting to restrain an injured animal, a large injured animal and place a bag over its head will likely send you to the hospital. I don’t even want to talk about the inert gas availability.
Shooting a deer in the back of the skull and quickly dispatching it only requires the skill that any gun owner already possesses. Very fast, and much less traumatic for the animal. And IMHO, calling the Vet would just allow the animal to suffer longer. I would suspect that it would take at least 30 minutes for them to get there.
Yes, he did. But in the title and OP, he clearly stated he didn’t want to use it and was looking for alternatives. I don’t think the asphyxiation idea was a great one, for the safety reasons I mentioned, but it was certainly a more topical and appropriate answer to the question than, “just use the gun”.
road kill might be used legally in some states though you might likely need to contact game wardens or law enforcement to get a permit.
to be eaten it needs to be had fresh. just like with hunting it needs to be gutted not long after death. also road kill might leave not a lot of good meat, massive impact causes damage to the body and ruins lots of meat.
The OP did have access to a gun. The Urban Spaceman knows this, but offers a method one might use if a gun isn’t available. So he is not misunderstanding the OP at all; just opining on a hypothetical situation where a gun isn’t available.
Not that I agree with his solution. As others have pointed out, it’s dangerous and it induces panic into the animal. Cutting the throat (assuming you have a knife – something more likely than having a handy container of nitrogen) may also be dangerous. In the situation, I think maintaining as much distance as possible is a good idea. It might be better to crush the skull with a heavy rock or a cinder block.
Actually, even though I think Spaceman’s idea is silly, the title of the thread does say “without a gun,” so I’d say that the OP was creating just such a hypothetical.
OK partly my fault for not being clearer in my initial post. If you have access to a gun and can safely restrain the animal, and a vet isn’t close at hand, then a point blank range bullet to the top of the skull is preferable, on account of safety. If you don’t have access to a gun and are not a vet, and can safely restrain the animal, hypoxia is the most humane method. In either case you need to restrain the animal to ensure that the animal is euthanised effectively and humanely, which will involve some degree of risk.
A blow to the skull or exsanguination are both considered unacceptable forms of euthanasia by the AVMA.
Veterinary surgeons deal with animals of all sizes, including deer injured by traffic. Of course it’s not standard practice to induce hypoxia using a plastic bag, though it’s nonetheless effective and relatively humane. Vets have access to barbiturates, penetrating captive bolt pistols, potassium chloride injections and many other approved methods for dealing with such cases, which are all preferable, but require you to be a vet.
Well, other than slowly bleeding and suffocating to death while thrashing around, yeah that does sound peaceful. Well, at least typing on the sdmb while thinking about gumdrop rainbows is peaceful.
As noted, while most veterinarians choose to focus on a small number of species, the profession as a whole is charged with the medical care of any and all animal species (“all but one” - i.e., all but humans). Obviously, there are some species which are so rarely seen or kept that there is little knowledge of how best to deal with them, but deer are well within the purview of wildlife and zoo vets, who usually go through further training after vet school to learn more about non-domestic species, and even some farm animal vets may deal with herds of captive cervids.
BTW, potassium chloride is NOT an acceptable way of killing an unanesthetized animal - general anesthesia should be induced first, then the KCl given. While hypoxia and/or hypercarbia (excess CO2) may produce air hunger, high concentrations of inert gases or CO2 produce unconsciousness quickly enough that they are considered acceptable by the AVMA.
Pithing and exsanguination are mentioned as being acceptable only when combined with stunning or anesthesia; however, it is my opinion that either would be preferable to an extended wait for a different form of euthanasia if there were none available. As a WAG on technique, I would probably try to do a longitudinal or diagonal cut in the jugular groove as deep as possible; at least in horses, the closer to the chest, the more likely you are to also hit the carotid artery and speed up exsanguination.
I’m sorry you had to see this; I have seen a horse who was slowly dying for some time because the owner could not be reached to authorize euthanasia (the vet ultimately euthanized without consent due to humane reasons), and it was gut-wrenching. I am going to have nightmares now about dying deer, since I am a suburbanite and don’t know anyone with a gun.
I heard the snap trap a little bit ago. Like the other two rodents, this one had a dark grey body. I assumed the first one was a rat, and indeed it was too large for the mouse-sized snap trap. It was caught with a rat-sized trap, which snapped its neck as designed. The second one was hit in the upper back and died instantly. Being smaller, I didn’t know if it was a rat or a mouse. This one was smaller still, and the trap snapped it above the hips. It was still alive, though it seemed to be conscious only in fits.
The most humane way of dispatching it was with a gun. A trip to the back yard and a .22 shot shell killed it quickly and painlessly. Much better and less messy than shovel decapitation.
Quick question for horsetech, as well as everybody else. I live in a Canada, a low-gun-owning country. I’m cool with blood and guts and shit. If I were in the OP’s position, I’d probably do something like:
go to pasture where deer is
having determined that me killing the deer now is the best option
chuck a burlap sack over it’s eyes to keep it from seeing me coming up on it
possibly do something to further restrain its legs- sack, blanket, sandbag, rope.
slit it’s throat with a long razor sharp knife. I’d use a kukri, but any really long, really sharp sturdy blade.
I’m soliciting advice now - assuming normal household items, what would be a better plan, in case it ever comes up and I have to deal with it.