To the Editor,
Your title, “Area residents split over ways to address deer overpopulation, culling methods,” gives the impression that there are a great deal of people who are for and against deer management in the Town of DeWitt and Syracuse. It also uses “culling methods” instead of “management methods” — culling is one of the management methods.
In fact, Assemblymember Pam Hunter sent out a survey earlier this year to the DeWitt/Syracuse residents — four zip codes — and found that an overwhelming 89 percent said they want action taken on the deer with 70 percent supporting lethal methods. Unfortunately, there is a small group that continues to put out misleading information with only one conclusion — don’t kill any deer.
Personally, I always liked the deer in my neighborhood. Yes, they would eat my flowers and sometimes get into my vegetable gardens, but we adjusted and didn’t think much about it. As a town councillor, it was my obligation to research this topic because many residents were complaining. What I found was very disturbing.
The cosmetic problems aside, the deer have been left unchecked in our region for so long that their impact is undisputed by experts. They are like an invasive species and have had a significant impact on the whole environmental chain of our region — from plants, trees and bushes to soil quality, erosion and insects and in turn to other animals who are being pushed out.
The assertion that Lyme can be controlled without deer management has no merit according to many deer and Lyme experts. And we have a Lyme epidemic — it is an underreported and insidious disease that eludes detection from the tests available to doctors and the longer it is undetected and not treated, the more damage it does in its victim. Yes, it’s the mice that carry the disease, but the deer play an essential role in propagating the disease to humans.
Lastly, if we have little issue in processing cows, sheep, chickens, etc. for consummation, I fail to understand how culling deer is different. When a cull is performed, the experts at the USDA kill the animal immediately so it doesn’t suffer and then take it directly to a processing facility and the meat is delivered to the food bank. In the end, when one has all the facts, this is not a controversial subject and the longer we wait, the more Lyme we will have and the more environmental damage will be done.
Kerin J Rigney
DeWitt Town Board
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