The proposed cull of 25 deer in Oak Bay, described in the media as the first cull of urban deer in Canada, deserves sober second thought by the newly elected council. Have the new councillors seen the letter from Craig Daniels, CEO of the SPCA for B.C.? And did anyone on council hear Lori Kalef, Canadian representative for SPCA International, now living in Oak Bay, describe the proposed cull as “barbaric”, at a rally for non-lethal alternatives for deer management, held Jan. 3 in front of the Oak Bay municipal hall.
Officials have been describing the proposed cull as “humane”, yet the procedure as shown in a brief video clip on CTV News, indicates that it is not.
We were told that the SpayVac contraceptive, a non-lethal alternative means of deer population reduction, would not be available in 2014. Now that we have crossed the threshold into 2015, why not undertake a pilot project with SpayVac? It has been used on James Island on fallow deer and at the base in Esquimalt on native black tailed deer.
As with a cull, it would have to be repeated periodically, but not as often. I would be willing to offer my garden for the purpose of contraception, and doubtless others who put compassion before killing would be willing to do so as well.
And please reduce the speed limit to 40 km/h from 50 km/h alongside Uplands Golf Course where most of the deer are being culled by cars.
Let us not remain a community divided, when we have an opportunity to be an international role model for seeking kinder methods of living with the wildlife among us.
Marion Cumming
Oak Bay
