Deer Doing Damage, What To Do?

Deer cause damage whether you live in a rural, suburban or urban area. Since deer easily adapt to their environment, they're found in every county, including cities, in every state. What follows is what to do when deer are causing damage to your property.

In suburban and urban areas, deer will ruin your gardens and landscaping. They also cause harm to humans through their presence on roads and streets. Every year, there are 1.5 million car crashes related to deer. Also, there are close to 10,000 injuries and hundreds of deaths due to deer related car accidents.

In the rural area, the roadway situation is no different, if not worse. Deer are notorious for jumping in front of cars attempting to get from one farm field to another. Furthermore, they cause damage to crops that can become very expensive. Car crashes alone cause more than $1 billion in damage each year. Crop damage per state is in the millions, often causing farmers to lose up to 10% of their crop each year.

Deer can also be aggressive towards humans, pets, and livestock. They will often see them as threats and attempt to hurt them as a defense tactic. Lastly, they can cary certain diseases that can easily transfer to animals and humans and cause crop damage.

To prevent and control deer, here are some tips to follow:

1. Do NOT feed deer. The exception to this rule is for hunting purposes in states where feeding and adding crops to attract deer are allowed. This also includes removing bird feeders and gardens in areas where deer are known to move through.

2. Put up fences and wiring that stops deer from accessing food sources.

3. Use repellents and other tactics to scare away deer.

4. Do NOT attempt to rehabilitate or tame wild deers. If you see baby deers (fawns) in the wild, this is completely normal. Leave them be.

5. Hunt them during hunting season in areas where hunting is allowed. In some states, you may have the ability to pull a nuisance deer permit to hunt them outside of regular hunting season. Check with your local gaming authority for details.