Letters to the Editor

A Western-style solution for wildlife management

I find your deer situation almost laughable, except for the fact that nature is suffering once again at the hands of human stupidity. From a lack of foresight and an inability to understand the reality of life and death, your predecessors and the current people in charge of the situation have been unable to come up with a solution to the deer problem. There are simple solutions, but due to everyone wanting to be "humane," the deer continue to overpopulate the area and now are dying on the roads and are eating people's vegetable gardens. The reality is, if people hadn't moved into the deer habitat, then this wouldn't be a problem. However, we know that no humans will leave their happy home to relinquish it to a bunch of deer. Would this even solve the problem? As long as there are no predators, natural or man-made, the deer will continue to multiply until they become diseased and/or starve. So that leaves very little to be done.

Either they are killed off by man or by natural predators. Alas, your forefathers have eliminated all the natural predators such as wolves or mountain lions that would have happily, in their natural process of survival of the fittest, eliminated a good portion of the deer population.

With that I would like to suggest a solution that would appease those who don't want inhumane methods of slaughter: the reintroduction of wolves and mountain lions. Although, I personally don't feel that being chased by a face full of fangs, being hamstrung so I can no longer run and then being chewed on until I finally die from loss of blood is a humane death. Of course it could happen quicker than that. I was just trying to be shocking. But according to many groups who defend the wolf, they say this is better than a quick bullet or bolt to the head. I may not think it more humane, but I do believe it is nature's way. A way that has been the tried and true method of animal management for more years than we humans have been walking the earth. If you're thinking, "Not in my backyard will I ever allow wolves," then I would refer you to all the material provided for wolf reintroduction programs that is readily available on the Internet and in your library. This material states that there have never been any documented cases of human beings being killed by wolves. Of course mountain lions are another problem because they have been known to pack off a baby or two. That is, if you really believe those stories.

I think you should consider the many advantages that wolves provide. Not only reduction in deer numbers, but reduction in pet and rodent populations as well. Additionally, it would save your family a trip out West, or to Minnesota, to hear the wolves howl and to see them loping across an open field or through the woods. You could have them right in your backyard.

Just like my 81-year-old mother who has had them come visit in her backyard where she hangs her laundry to dry. But you know she's not afraid because there have never been any documented cases of wolves killing humans.

There are some of us out here in the West who sincerely feel this method of deer control would be the perfect solution to your problem. And just to clarify one or two points; the first being that we had wolves before they were reintroduced, not very many, but they were here; and secondly that most of us admire and love the spirit of the wolf. What we hate is having the government and special-interest groups cram their agendas down our throats and into our backyards. Annette McFarland Lava Hot Springs, Idaho