Wednesday, Feb 21, 2024 5:00 AMUpdated Wednesday, Feb. 21, 2024 10:30 AM
CPW reminds residents to limit snag hazards
Colorado Parks and Wildlife Officer Luke Clancy responded to a situation involving a deer caught in a metal cable in a backyard Feb. 6 near Miller Middle School in Durango. Every year, officers respond to about three incidents of deer with antlers caught in various snag hazards. Clancy was able to tranquilize the deer and successfully unravel the wire. (Courtesy of Colorado Parks and Wildlife)
Colorado Parks and Wildlife Officer Luke Clancy responded to a situation involving a deer caught in a metal cable in a backyard Feb. 6 near Miller Middle School in Durango. Every year, officers respond to about three incidents of deer with antlers caught in various snag hazards. Clancy was able to tranquilize the deer and successfully unravel the wire. (Courtesy of Colorado Parks and Wildlife)
It was 5:30 a.m. when Colorado Parks and Wildlife Officer Luke Clancy got the call from a resident on the north side of Durango, near Miller Middle School, about a buck thrashing in the backyard.
Earlier that morning, the male mule deer had gotten its large set of antlers caught in a metal cable that had been strung across the unfenced yard as a dog run.
“It was well tangled up,” Clancy said. “It had destroyed a lot of the backyard, been doing flips around and tore out some stumps, tore the post down on one side of the cable.”
Every year, antlered wildlife – primarily mule deer and elk – are caught in fences, hammocks, volleyball nets, string lights and other snag hazards.
A buck mule deer races down West Third Avenue with a canvas chair wrapped around its antlers in 2013. The deer struggled for about 30 minutes before it could tear down the chair that was hanging from a tree. (Jerry McBride/Durango Herald file)
A buck mule deer races down West Third Avenue with a canvas chair wrapped around its antlers in 2013. The deer struggled for about 30 minutes before it could tear down the chair that was hanging from a tree. (Jerry McBride/Durango Herald file)
This deer got its antlers caught in a purple net of some kind in 2006. (Jerry McBride/Durango Herald file)
This deer got its antlers caught in a purple net of some kind in 2006. (Jerry McBride/Durango Herald file)
When Clancy arrived to the scene on Feb. 6, he shot the deer with a tranquilizer dart.
The animal, exhausted from trying to escape the cable for over an hour, collapsed sedated within five minutes. It took another five minutes for Clancy to unravel the cable, do a physical exam and tag the animal before administering a reversal drug.
“It’s a constant struggle,” he said of warning the public to remove snag hazards. “... They’re so comfortable around everything that we put up that it’s a common occurrence.”
“It’s a constant struggle,” said Colorado Parks and Wildlife Officer Luke Clancy of warning the public to remove snag hazards. “… They’re so comfortable around everything that we put up that it’s a common occurrence.” (Courtesy of Colorado Parks and Wildlife)
“It’s a constant struggle,” said Colorado Parks and Wildlife Officer Luke Clancy of warning the public to remove snag hazards. “… They’re so comfortable around everything that we put up that it’s a common occurrence.” (Courtesy of Colorado Parks and Wildlife)
This incident ended happily – but not all of them do. Stressed antlered ungulates can break their neck as they writhe to try to escape restraints, or can suffocate.
And snag hazards are just one of several threats that humans can pose to wildlife.
In January, CPW put out a similar warning about metal fences that can entrap yearling deer. Clancy said he has also noticed an increase in humans feeding deer in the Durango area.
By midwinter, deer can start to look hungry, prompting humans to step in. He said people sometimes leave dog food, bird seed or other snacks out for the animals.
“Unfortunately, that comes from a desire to help animals but it comes from people not understanding animals,” Clancy said. “They existed for hundreds of thousands of years without us and they can do just fine without us feeding them through the winter.”
Deer that become accustomed to humans feeding them become pushy or even aggressive, he warned, adding that its creates a bad situation for deer and for people.
We got a report of this buck with its antlers tangled in the steel cable of the dog run, and Officer Clancy quickly responded. To get close to the deer to free it from the entanglement, he first had to dart the deer and tranquilize it. The reporting party shared this video. pic.twitter.com/mFvaQGNeUC
— CPW SW Region (@CPW_SW) February 15, 2024
This year’s relatively mild winter has meant that deer are able to survive the large storms, and instead migrate toward the more moderate temperatures in New Mexico. But the north-south migration means crossing U.S. Highway 160, which runs east-west.
Clancy said he expects another “big kill” as the deer start to move north once again when spring arrives.
If deer are killed by traffic, human scavengers can harvest the meat so long as they obtain a permit from a CPW office. But, Clancy warns, keep an eye out for ear tags. Blue ear tags, the kind he attached to the deer involved in the Feb. 6 incident, have a date before which the animal’s meat should not be consumed, to ensure the drugs have fully worked their way out of the deer’s system.
Every year, officers respond to about three incidents of deer with antlers caught in various snag hazards. Clancy was able to tranquilize the deer and successfully unravel the wire. (Courtesy of Colorado Parks and Wildlife)
Every year, officers respond to about three incidents of deer with antlers caught in various snag hazards. Clancy was able to tranquilize the deer and successfully unravel the wire. (Courtesy of Colorado Parks and Wildlife)
If residents do spot a tangled deer, Clancy warns against approaching the animal. Sharp antlers paired with a powerful, stressed deer can lead to a bad outcome.
“I would never advise someone to go out and try to cut a deer out on their own,” he said.
Instead, report the animal to the on-call wildlife officer via Colorado State Patrol, at (303) 239-4501 or by calling 911.
rschafir@durangoherald.com
