Re: Loud and clear on urban deer (News, Dec. 7)
I have a problem with the conclusion reached by the author of the article as this was based on no more than a few hundred letters of complaint received by the Capital Regional District last August.
Furthermore, most of the letters were from residents of Oak Bay, who are traditionally the most sensitive to damage to their gardens and flowers, which seemed to be their main complaint. What about all the other hundreds of thousands of Greater Victoria residents who did not write with a complaint? What is their opinion?
The ridiculous CRD poll mentioned in the article is totally insignificant and not even close to the kind of consultation I think is necessary in this matter.
The lives of thousands of innocent creatures are at stake here and these are far more important than a few residents’ flowers.
I can’t believe that such a level of carelessness and cruelty is even possible in citizens of a civilized country.
The destructive solution is always the easiest, and we see way too much of it lately from ‘conservation’ officers. The cull the province is likely to implement if this option is approved is a horrible and painful slaughterhouse-style trapping and execution method imported from Montana. It is already being considered in Cranbrook and other cities in B.C.
There are, of course, alternatives to these inexcusable mass murders.
The example of the successful relocation of the rabbits from the University of Victoria shows that everything is possible if the will is there and the effort is made.
We can and should live in harmony with our fellow animals. Nature and wildlife are priceless and irreplaceable treasures for B.C. and we should do everything in our power to preserve them. It’s up to us to find a practical way to overcome the inevitable coexistence problems in a responsible and respectful way.
N.R. Spogliarich
Saanich