Residents may have the best of intentions but they are providing a possible death sentence when removing fawns.
Pete Wise, a wildlife expert, has had three cases in two days of people picking up baby deer they believe are alone.
“They are not abandoned,” said Wise, adding that it’s natural for does to walk away from their fawns.
“She will put them in grass or somewhere else and leave them for up to three days to feed herself so she can produce milk. She will come back.”
Wise added that it is illegal to interfere with fawns and once picked up, they may have to be transported to a wildlife park to live.
“Their life expectancy is limited because they become habituated to people. They can be returned to the wild but the rate of survival is limited because they have nothing to bond to (and learn survival skills).”
With a growing urban deer population in Vernon, fawns are being born in residential neighbourhoods, but Wise’s message is the same there as it is for rural areas: “Leave the babies alone.”