Princeton woman wants cull after deer attacks dogs

A Princeton resident whose dog was attacked and hurt by a deer earlier this week wants action to deal with them in the community.

Brittany Antonick was loading her truck with her husband when she saw a woman walking with two dogs and a baby in a stroller, Wednesday, June 15.

“Then all of a sudden I saw a deer pop out of my neighbour’s bushes and it was eyeing her up, it was ready to attack,” she said. She ran over to the woman and her dog followed her. The deer stomped on the dog and pinned it to the ground.

READ MORE: Animal welfare advocates ask court to stop white-tailed deer cull south of Montreal

“My husband literally tackled the deer off my dog,” she said. Then the deer circled the lady and started attacking the dogs.

“She started to scream and scream, I was screaming, she was screaming,” she said, adding she grabbed the woman’s stroller and ran into the house with the woman and her dogs.

It isn’t the first time Antonick has dealt with aggressive deer in Princeton, she said she’s dealt with several similar instances in the last few years.

Her dog is bruised and battered but otherwise OK.

Antonick said she wants a deer cull but is open to other decisions to address the issue.

“I think it’s getting worse, not better,” she said. “Something needs to be done.”

A Conservation Officer didn’t arrive to try and find the deer until Friday, June 17, she said.

Princeton Mayor Spencer Coyne said the process to deal with deer in the community isn’t so simple.

Wildlife is regulated under the province and evidence must be shown to warrant a cull, he said. “We don’t have the science to back it up.”

Issues with deer in the community have been ongoing for more than 20 years. “It’s the worst time of year for it because everyone walks their dog and (the deer) don’t see the difference between a dog and a coyote,” he said.

A cull also may not solve the problem.

“If there’s a vacuum, something always moves in to fill that vacuum,” he said. Sterilization is another option but it’s very expensive, he said.

“It’s a super divisive topic no matter what we do with them.”

Princeton also doesn’t have its own Conservation Officer, officers either drive up from Merritt or Penticton, he said.

To contact a reporter for this story, email Carli Berry or call 250-864-7494 or email the editor. You can also submit photos, videos or news tips to the newsroom and be entered to win a monthly prize draw.

We welcome your comments and opinions on our stories but play nice. We won't censor or delete comments unless they contain off-topic statements or links, unnecessary vulgarity, false facts, spam or obviously fake profiles. If you have any concerns about what you see in comments, email the editor in the link above.