Rescued deer has new look, hunters ask if buck can be shot
A mule deer that was rescued in mid-October after its head and antlers became ensnared in string has a new lease on life and a sporty new appearance.
“Remember the mule deer that got tangled in some string a couple weeks ago? Well, look at him now with his all-new bling (GPS collar),” the Utah Division of Wildlife Resources wrote Friday on Facebook. “Check out this wildlife before and after!”
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The deer was tranquilized and fitted with a collar after residents of Parowan reported seeing a buck “with an unidentifiable mass of string caught in its antlers,” the UDWR stated on Oct. 13. “The buck was not able to see through what we suspect was a tangled hammock.”
Reaction to Friday’s post, showing a side-by-side, then-and-now image, might not be what some expected.
While some comments were congratulatory, others were from people wondering whether it’s OK to shoot the buck during hunting season.
“So if we do shoot a collared deer & report it, we won’t be harassed?” one person asked. “I mean you collar a big deer like that, that may be one in a lifetime for me. Ima shoot it!”
The UDWR responded with an answer that might surprise some of its followers, stating that the collared buck is fair game during hunting season.
“We encourage hunters not to shoot collared deer,” the agency wrote. “But if you do just make sure to report it so we can pick up the collar and reuse it.”
–Image courtesy of the Utah Division of Wildlife Resources
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