April 18, 2023 |
Photo – Town Mule Deer – Bigfoot99 file photo
Feeding deer does not make you a good person despite your good intentions.
Feeding mule deer could produce deadly results. To remind citizens of this fact, the Rawlins city council has invited a Wyoming Game and Fish representative to speak at tonight’s meeting.
Wyoming Game and Fish Wildlife Management Coordinator of the Lander Region Dylan Lutz explained what he will discuss during the city council meeting.
Lutz said the city council asked Game and Fish to explain why people should leave the deer in town alone. He said the advice isn’t specific to Rawlins, however. Feeding high-carb food, such as corn and hay, to mule deer could cause a condition known as a Gut Bomb. Lutz explained how feeding the deer could cause the horrific condition.
Lutz said nothing people can feed the deer would be considered safe or healthy for the animals to consume. Lutz said no one has come up with a better food substitute than the sagebrush and other woody plants mule deer typically eat during winter.
Lutz said other cervids, such as elk, are better able to digest food typically provided by humans. Mule deer are unique in their inability to handle artificial feeding. Besides slowly poisoning the deer, Lutz said feeding the animals may have other unintended consequences. He said large groups of deer tend to spread illnesses, such as chronic wasting disease, and attract predators into town.
Large numbers of deer can pose a danger to humans as well. The more animals around, the higher the likelihood of traffic strikes. Lutz said mule deer can also become very combative when defending a food source, increasing the likelihood of harming a person.
Like most communities in Carbon County, Rawlins has a resident population of mule deer. According to the Wyoming Game and Fish Department, the best thing you can do to help the animals is to leave them to their own devices.
