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"Non-violence leads to the highest ethics, which is the goal of all evolution.
Until we stop harming all other living creatures, we are savages."
Thomas Edison
I have been following the Cayuga Heights deer management issue very
closely, mainly because I am concerned about the suffering of those who
cannot speak for or defend themselves. Deer live within the context of
nature's laws, taking no more food and water than necessary, and caring for
and protecting their offspring. Their attempts to endure on starvation rations,
survive a broken leg, or cross a busy road safely with their young are pitiable
to witness. During deer hunting season, they are put into high alert, fearing
for their lives while at the same time trying to survive the long cold winter.
I, on the other hand, enjoy food and luxury way beyond my basic needs, live
in a lovely home that keeps me warm in the winter, receive medical care
when I am in pain, and have the means to protect my family and myself.
This extreme advantage gives me pause.
When I recently had a black-footed tick (inaccurately called "deer tick")
removed, the physician said to me: "and this is a good reason to get rid of
the deer." One of the world's leading expert on the transmission of Lyme
disease maintains that the deer's role in the spread of the disease has been
greatly distorted, but even if I did become ill because of contact with a deer
or any other animal in the wild, do I really have the right to eliminate that
species because my well being might be threatened? Am I above the laws of
nature? Further, should the deer become an enemy to be annihilated because
they eat my garden plants, or dent my car ("a deer hit my car" — "who hit
who?)!
In response to the claim that the deer in Cayuga Heights are overpopulated,
what recent study has been completed that substantiates this assertion? There
is no evidence that the number of deer has been increasing. It has been
stated that the deer population is presently around 170-210, which is in the
same range indicated by a study done in 2000. The deer tend to regulate
their numbers based on the available food supply and the harshness of the
winters. When food supply is scarce, they reproduce less, having one fawn
instead of two or three, or if hungry enough, none at all.
The ongoing argument about deer "overpopulation" in general has always
sounded insane to me. It would be more accurate to say that humans are
overpopulated, and that our greed and gluttony has driven many species to
extinction, while pushing our ailing earth to the point of no return.
Because we humans continue to expand our "territory," with absolutely no
regard for the balance of the natural environment (the native habitat of
Cayuga Heights was destroyed long ago when the houses were first built)
and the communities presently in place are not going to go away, we must
find a way to live in peace with the deer. Those who have concerns about
their yards should advocate for the right to put up adequate fencing, not
mass murder the innocent deer who cannot be blamed for being forced to eat
our plants, leave feces in our yards, or according to some individuals, behave
in aberrant ways.
One thing I know for certain, the proposed "Net and Bolt" method of dealing
with this issue is unconscionable, and should be withdrawn with haste. I
challenge anyone who supports this method to stand in witness as the
procedure is executed, and then say that the experience does not torture his
heart.
"We must fight against the spirit of unconscious cruelty with which we treat
the animals. Animals suffer as much as we do. True humanity does not allow
us to impose such suffering upon them. Until we extend our circle of
compassion to all living creatures, humanity will not find peace (Albert
Schweitzer)."
1 am not naive enough to think that we humans would be capable of giving
up our dominance and tyranny over nature, however, I fervently hope we
will at least be able to identify with the innate desire in the heart of all
creatures to survive as long as possible without pain, to raise their families
with a modicum of peace, and to live without constant fear and suffering.