Deer, bears, mountain lions, skunks, raccoons and a host of other wild animals are all part of living in Lake County. But what happens when one of these animals shows up in your backyard and is injured or becomes a pest? In other words, whom do you call?
Twenty years ago most of the county”s residents were hunters and outdoors people who could solve the problem themselves, but the demographics of Lake County has changed dramatically. Now there are thousands of retired folks who have never been out in the wild and most don”t even own a gun. In other words, they are ill equipped to handle wild animals.
Skunks are known to carry rabies and an injured deer can be extremely dangerous. As any wildlife biologist will tell you, handling any wild animal can result in a serious injury.
For example, last week a woman called me and said a deer had crashed into her neighbor”s fence and broke its leg. The deer was in agony and the caller didn”t know who to call or what to do. The county”s Animal Control doesn”t handle wild animals and she couldn”t get in touch with the game wardens.
The subject of what to do with wild animals was on the agenda during Thursday”s monthly meeting of the Lake County Fish and Wildlife Advisory Committee. Department of Fish and Game (DFG) warden Loren Freeman told the committee that he receives at least one call a day about deer being injured on the local roads and highways. If he is available he will respond to the call, but because of DFG budget restrictions the game wardens aren”t authorized to work any overtime.
Sandie Elliott of Spirit Wild, an organization that rescues injured wildlife, says that she receives calls from throughout the county about injured wildlife. She responds to calls dealing with small animals and birds but isn”t equipped to handle deer. According to Elliott, there is no county plan for handling injured wild animals.
Fish and Wildlife Advisory Committee Chairman Greg Giusti said that he has held several meetings with county officials in an attempt to come up with a countywide plan to help local residents. That plan would direct the caller on whom to contact.
As it now stands, if a person calls the sheriff”s dispatch to report an injured animal they are given several telephone numbers, including the DFG, but the problem is that after 5 p.m. on weekdays or on weekends there is usually no one available to respond.
According to the law, it”s illegal for a person to dispatch a wounded deer or other wildlife. The only exception is if it”s deer season and the person has a valid license and deer tags. If the deer is located near a residence or on the highway, it”s illegal to discharge a firearm.
According to game warden Freeman, only a peace officer is authorized to kill the deer. In Lake County that means a warden or a peace officer such as a sheriff”s deputy, highway patrolman or police officer. Even this presents a problem because if the peace officer kills the injured deer, who will dispose the carcass? There is no one in the county who picks up dead animals.
The problem is not only about injured wildlife but healthy wildlife that”s causing a problem. Skunks have been a problem in the county for years. Every year there are numerous complaints from local residents about skunks living beneath their homes. But as it now stands, unless you”re willing to trap the skunk yourself, you”re stuck with the animal and the smell. The same applies to raccoons and possums, and at least once a year a mountain lion shows up in someone”s backyard.
There is a federal trapper assigned to the county but he is also assigned to Napa County and isn”t always available.
Giusti says the goal of the committee is to develop a detailed plan and distribute it to the local branches of government. For example, if someone calls the Central Dispatch and reports an injured deer in his backyard, he/she would receive detailed instructions on who to call and what to do.
