Wolves make terrible neighbors … three or four breeding pairs in England would be a nightmare … yet still not be near enough to control the deer populations …
Agriculture ruins the natural eco-system … so any ecologically sound control methods aren’t going to work … I don’t know what the solution is but deer around here are a nuisance … maybe it’s time to designate them as a non-game animal and let the people hunt them anytime anywhere … like any other varmint …
I can’t stand idiots like that. It’s like with Canada Geese. we’re overrun by the goddamn things, and all of their standing around shitting everywhere means many of our beaches are unusable for swimming. Yet all the time you’ll see morons- with “DON’T FEED THE WILDLIFE” signs right there next to them- throwing bread scraps to the geese. say anything to them, they either ignore you or give you a dirty look. When the police/DNR come by and scold them, they pull out the “but my KIDS want to see the geese!” card as though that makes it ok.
people just don’t realize that “cute” animals are not cuddly and tame. Deer are strong, skittish, and don’t trust you. they can seem all warm and fuzzy and serene up until something spooks them.
ask the people in your community how they’ll feel about deer once they see one stomp their dog or cat into the ground:
(yes, that’s what happens in that video. Don’t watch it if you don’t want to see it.
Male white tail deer are brutal to the does - Nothing noble about their habits. Forcible rape - or call it forcible non-consensual copulation if you wish - is common. For the male ,it’s a valid breeding strategy in that it may abort a rival’s fetus.
Also: Azaleas. 'nuff said.
I was writing for the benefit of our American friends, for whom all that would qualify as “difficult”, especially against the “Hello, I’m an adult and would like to buy a pump-action shotgun and a box of shells; here’s some money, have a pleasant day” that’s required in much of the US. 
By the rest of the world’s standards, getting a Shotgun Certificate isn’t particularly onerous, I agree. 
I do wish more people understood that cute and cuddly animals can still be vicious pests - you should see the flak I’ve copped for suggesting a spot of bunny hunting might be a good way to spend the Easter break.
My dad said that up at the cemetary at our church, the deer went and had a feast at all the graves – hardly any flowers were left. They completely wrecked havoc over the place.
Deer aren’t cute – they’re dinner.
Texas Parks & Wildlife governs hunting here. I obtain my meat neatly pre-packaged from climate-controlled environments–in fact, I’ll go to Whole Foods or Central Market to get the humanely raised stuff. But the department’s TV showruns on PBS, so I know what they do.
Perusing the site shows seasons for all huntable critters. There are special seasons for hunting with muzzle-loaders, bow & arrow–and falcons! Alligators are a success story–formerly endangered, hunters may now bag one per year. Occasionally TV news will show a big 'gator found in one of the swampy suburbs of Houston–wranglers move them to sanctuaries.
Recently, the Ag Commissioner proposed poisoning feral hogs. Hunters oppose this & want to take care of the problem. They may include a few drunken fools but mostly, they do care about the environment. And the game wardens seem pretty serious.
That brings up an ancillary question related to animal behavior. After more than a century with no apex predators to worry about (or even recognize), would British deer even know to be afraid of a wolf or bear? Or can that “instinct” have been habituated out of them?
They run from dogs, as this video clearly demonstrates:
Okay, but is that the kind of behavior wolves (or bears) would display?
regarding the hunting of feral pigs by drunkin fools, that is, I would think, a rapidly self correcting problem. Hogs are big(except pecarries, comparatively) and tough and mean and aggressive and man they are evil smart too.
[quote=“Baron_Greenback, post:88, topic:784297”]
They run from dogs, as this video clearly demonstrates:
[/QUOTE]Except the second video I posted above (spoilered) says otherwise. a doe will attack a dog or other animal to protect her fawn. in that case, the dog wasn’t even near them nor moving in their direction, but the doe ran over to it and kicked/stomped the hell out of it. So ferociously that the dog had no chance to get away. then the doe tried to do the same thing to a cat, but the cat was able to get the hell out of Dodge.
Pecarry (javelina) make up for size by being even smarter, and damned ornery.
I’ve never hunted pigs, but if I ever do I’ll make sure to ignore Lancel Lannister and drink wine at my own pace.
I know that puma and bear can both learn to fear tracking dogs. I read a study (which I’d have to look for) that looked at behavior of both animals in an area where they were putting tracking collars on the animals. They used dogs teams to track them. Initially, the animals were not afraid of the approaching dogs, did not run, etc. After being tranquilized and treated to a few hours of manhandling, er, measurements, before re-release, the same animals would run and usually get treed after a much longer chase when it came time to re-capture in order to re-check the collar and re-measure.
I believe the conclusion was that instilling fear behaviors in apex predators might make human/predator interactions safer for all parties. The predators would avoid humans (and dogs) more assiduously.
Does anyone know if anyone has tried to clear an area of deer with dogs? Run an old fashioned hunt, I suppose. Do it a few times, instill the behavior, and then patrol an urban area with dogs to keep it clear of deer. The deer themselves could be hunted away from town, in a safer area.
Speaking from my own experience, deer stopped visiting my property the day my pack moved in. (Rottweiler, Akita, GSD) I think they might have done serious damage to a deer if they could have caught one. Apparently the deer agreed.
Even with a certificate, solid shotgun slugs are not legal for use in hunting (in the UK), so a shotgun would be a pretty poor choice of weapon, all told.