Non-Lethal Deer Population Control for Urban and Suburban Environments
See below for the latest news updates Also see Deer Fence, Deer Resistant Plants and Repellents, Transportation Safety, Deer and Lyme Disease, Contraception Research, Dogs for Deer Management, a deer sterilization project at Cornell, the Botstiber Institute.
Deer Culls used to manage suburban deer create a public safety issue and provide only a short term solution, requiring a perpetual killing program. Examples of the Perpetual, Annual Deer Cull. Many people don't want their neighborhood deer to be slaughtered. Deer are edge dwellers, living at the interface of the meadow and the thick forest. A lush suburban habitat can support more deer, the carrying capacity, than a forest.
Communities wanting fewer deer can reduce the carrying capacity using fences, deer resistant landscaping and repellents. Deer fence is a good long-term solution because it reduces the food available to the deer and that will reduce their population over time. Examples of other non-lethal approaches. Information below for contraception, sterilization, and relocation. A ban on feeding deer is often a first approach, sometimes a required approach. Also a deer population survey.
Deer culls using sharpshooters or bow hunters may not be feasible in suburban environments because of public safety concerns. Bow hunting is becoming more popular, but even under the best conditions a significant number of deer are likely to be wounded [graphic examples] and not recovered by archers, 50 percent rates are reported in the literature.
Although many hunters will not participate in an urban cull, considering it an extermination rather than a hunt, cities often find others willing to pay a license fee to participate. Professional sharpshooters improve public safety and kill efficiency, but costs run from about $300 to $1,000 per deer. Below a video of the trap and kill method used by many deer exterminators, including Cornell.
Deer respond to a cull with increased fertility, producing more twins and triplets, and a larger proportion of female fawns that will further increase the deer population -- the Rebound effect in the figure above [research support] --compensatory reproduction, also observed in mountain lion and coyote populations.
Light to moderate hunting, as in many urban culls, does not change the long-run total deer population in an otherwise stable environment. More dramatic culls, keeping the deer population at about 50 or 60 percent of the carrying capacity, achieves the maximum sustainable yield, the largest number of deer than can be killed annually while maintaining the population. Also, other deer attracted by available food may migrate into the area, although suburban does have very small ranges and migration rates will depend on local factors. A sterile doe will discourage new deer from entering her territory, the "placeholder" effect, and eat food that would result in more fawns from fertile does.
The result of a cull is a future, perpetual negative cash outlay for communities and lots of slaughtered deer. Cost analysis of urban deer cull programs typically ignores the future cost of maintaining the program and also ignores the intrinsic value of the life of each deer. The January 2018 issue of Wildlife Professional advises that it is a myth that wildlife populations need to be hunted or harvested to control populations [p. 28].
Confusing the public debate are the wide range of unsupported optimal deer density recommendations presented to the public as scientific management goals (deer density and forest regeneration) and the concept that deer culls can generally be used to reduce the risk of Lyme disease, contrary to most of the current research. Some states are requiring hunting to be the only method of deer control in suburban areas, ignoring local local decisions. In all cases, decision makers should be aware that they are designing the future herd based on the management method.
News and reports below about three types of population control:
contraception, sterilization, and relocation.
Deer Contraception
Products: Gonacon, Spayvac a PZP (porcine zona pellucid) Cost per deer can be in the two hundred dollar range, but will vary depending local labor costs, number of deer and related issues. Birth control needs to be reapplied after a few years, up to six years for Spayvac, but the time is being extended as the technology develops. Success rates are often reported to be in the 90 to 95 percent range. This approach generally has a lower risk of deer fatalities than sterilization.
A private effort to experiment with contraception in British Columbia. The U.S. Humane Society provides this service, contact information and an example proposal. The nonprofit Science and Conservation Center in Billings, Montana, has many years experience working with horses, deer, and other animals. On July 6, 2017, the EPA approved an application to register ZonaStat-H, a fertility control vaccine that will provide a humane management tool for managers of deer populations.
News
Tega Cay Leaders Continue To Weigh Options To Deal With Deer Overpopulation Issue November 21, 2023 South Carolina, WCCB Charlotte
... the state has approved the possible use of PZP, a type of birth control for deer. They are shot with darts with the pregnancy blocker. Members of the Tega Cay Wildlife Conservation Society are trying to convince city leaders to go with that option...
Wildlife nonprofit presents other option for controlling deer pop. in Tega Cay November 2, 2023 South Carolina, CN2 News
... a group called Tega Cay Wildlife Conservation Society which is presenting another option ... called PZP and the Conservation Society says it’s a natural protein that would be darted into the female deer and will cause the deer’s immune system to prevent pregnancy, breaking the cycle of more deer being born. Officials say it is 80 to 90 percent effective...
Pittsburgh introduces plan to cull deer population with controlled bow hunt in 2 parks August 29, 2023 CBS News
... "A lot of people have asked, 'Why can't you use sort of a chemical birth control, some other options for that?' But the reality is that the population of the deer itself has gotten to where those mitigation measures are less effective, are not as effective until we're able to lower those numbers," said Maria Montaño, communications director of the mayor's office...
Effects of pharmacological castration on endocrinological and chemical profiles in captive red and fallow deer - The European Zoological Journal, 2023
... We placed a subcutaneous implant of deslorelin acetate (4.7 mg) on four male red deer (Cervus elaphus) and two male fallow deer (Dama dama) (N = 6) living together in a mixed-sex and -species group housed at a wildlife rescue centre in Tuscany, Italy ... In conclusion, our preliminary findings suggest that deslorelin acetate, causing a decrease of testosterone level and impacting the chemical profile of odour secretions, could work as a non-invasive contraception approach in human-managed populations of deer...
Could immunocontraception be used to control Ohio deer population? Aprl 8, 2023 Ohio, WDTN
... commissioners for Mill Creek MetroParks is expected to make a decision about deer culling... Geoff Westerfield works for ODNR ... “If fertility control worked, they would go back to that,” Westerfield said... Three studies outside Ohio have shown strong evidence that these vaccines can decrease the deer population ... The one in Maryland showed a 50% decrease in deer population over six years... [another one in San Jose]
Effects of pharmacological castration on endocrinological and chemical profiles in captive red and fallow deer 2023 University of Wolverhampton
... In wildlife captive management, contraception is highly desirable due to inbreeding risk and needed control of intra- and inter-specific aggressions. Deer, for which surgical castration can cause abnormal growth of the antlers, are suitable candidates for pharmacological castration... , our preliminary findings suggest that deslorelin acetate, causing a decrease of testosterone level and impacting the chemical profile of odour secretions, could work as a non-invasive contraception approach in human-managed populations of deer...
Deer contraception hits the target September 23, 2022 The Humane Society of the United States
... they sedated and tagged does to identify them, then hand-injected a version of PZP ... The team had treated more than 60% of does ... The deer population fell by 50% over five years... “We can do two shots over two and a half years and probably get five years [of contraception].” ...
Fawns on lawns: Oak Bay still seeks long-term deer management plan August 22, 2022 British Columbia, Victoria News
... Oak Bay’s immunocontraception program has cut deer numbers in and around the municipality by 40 per cent since it began in 2019... In terms of other options, culls prove largely ineffective and translocation merely moves the problem from one community to another ...
Oak Bay's deer management research on international stage June 6, 2022 British Columbia, Oak Bay News
...Wildlife veterinarian Dr. Adam Hering presented Dr. Jason Fisher’s work, highlighting data around habitat use and the fawning rate reduction... the immunocontraception application was showing a reduction in fawning rates by about 60 per cent after the first year...
Oak Bay deer research continues, with lower fawn numbers noted April 11, 2022 British Columbia, Oak Bay News
... a report prepared for Oak Bay Council ... found that after a single year of IC treatment of 60 urban female black-tailed deer – estimated to be at least 63 per cent of the female population – Oak Bay saw a 58 per cent reduction in fawns for 2020...
Oak Bay deer birth-control project shows 60 per cent decrease in fawns November 24, 2021 British Columbia, Times Colonist
... Oak Bay’s birth-control program for deer is working. An interim report posted online by the municipality this week shows a 60 per cent decrease in the number of fawns born in 2020, one year after the start of an immunocontraceptive vaccine pilot project...
Feral Hog contraceptive introduced to help curb population growth October 24, 2021 Utah, KLTV
... Texas A and M AgriLife extension service is testing out a new feral hog contraceptive ... The issue is we need to target it just to feral hogs. We don’t want the deer population for example for them to eat this bait and then for them to not reproduce. That would be awful...
Princeton, Annual Managed Deer Hunt Begins Saturday TAPinto September 15, 2021 New Jersey
... The culling of deer within the municipality was highly controversial when it began in 1982. ... the use of deer contraceptives had been discontinued. Cecil said that state regulations that apply to darting of deer, in order to tranquilize them so that the contraceptive could be administered, had become “Kafka-esque in their interpretation.” ...
Farmington Hills takes steps to adopt a deer management plan September 2, 2021 Michigan, C&G Newspapers
... Of the various options that have been suggested for how to manage the deer population, Farmington Hills Council member Ken Massey said he is not satisfied with the “only option” the DNR has been pushing for, which is to kill them... “If there is a birth control available for the does, it would make sense ...
Urban deer in Greater Victoria community to be put on birth control August 24 2021 British Columbia, CBC.ca
... Esquimalt will be the second Greater Victoria community to use birth control to manage the population of urban deer as part of a research project...Jason Fisher, adjunct professor at the University of Victoria's School of Environmental Studies, is leading the Esquimalt Deer Research ...
Esquimalt launches birth control study for urban deer July 19, 2021 British Coliumbia, Victoria News
... Esquimalt will begin the work of vaccinating does with immunocontraceptives this summer ... Before the study, a survey was sent to local households, inviting residents to weigh in about their own experiences and location of deer interactions. Together, these steps helped inform the immunocontraceptive plan...
Contraceptive available in Texas to help control wild pigs July 15, 2021 Brownwood Bulletin
... HogStop ... “It’s an all-natural feed bait that is made out of ingredients we feed the cattle and deer, and we just combined it in such a way to use it on feral hogs to make the boars sterile,” ...
Esquimalt proceeding with birth control study on deer June 30, 2021 British Columbia, Saanich News
... The research is being done by the University of Victoria Applied Conservation Macro Ecology Lab. This summer, a capture team consisting of a wildlife veterinarian and field technicians will tag 20 female control deer using darts...
Lesniak Calls on UC to Establish Fertility Control Programs for Deer Management April 13, 2021 New Jersey, InsiderNJ
... Former Senator Raymond Lesniak kicked off the event by breaking the news that the Lesniak Institute will be working with advocates and Union County officials to establish a deer fertility control program in Union County... In their research, they found that fertility control programs could gradually reduce the deer population in their neighborhood to a sustainable size without unnecessary lethal force...
An Overview of Wildlife Fertility Control April 13, 2021 Pennsylvania, Botstiber Institute for Wildlife Fertility Control
... The Botstiber Institute for Wildlife Fertility Control is excited to share the new educational film, “An Overview of Wildlife Fertility Control,” on April 20, 2021 at 1:00pm EDT... This film was created with the intention of educating the public and creating connections between wildlife managers, researchers and advocates...
Town considers deer options, no-feeding ordinance March 19, 2021 Washington, Whidbey News-Times
... the state Department of Fish and Wildlife said there’s nothing currently available [birth control] for the resident ungulates who roam the streets of the town... it hasn’t been used on blacktail deer... the mayor found trapping and killing to be an “ugly” and “extreme” response to the overpopulation problem...
Head of the Harbor village, Hunters kill tagged deer used in study, researcher says November 16, 2020 New York, Newsday
... "Killing tagged deer is very harmful to the research, since each one provides us with information on how long the contraceptive vaccine lasts and helps us understand how deer move around the village," Tufts University researcher Allen Rutberg ...
Oak Bay, Deer contraceptive program in Oak Bay deemed successful, but challenges remain October 4, 2020 British Columbia, CHEK
... the project has managed to vaccinate approximately 75 per cent of Oak Bay’s deer population with birth control. “I’d say 70 to 80 per cent of the vaccinated does will be effectively contracepted so that means only 20 to 30 percent of them will have fawns compared to 95 per cent will have fawns without the vaccine,” [ wildlife veterinarian Adam Hering] ...
South Euclid council approves culling deer with sharpshooters September 30, 2020 Ohio, cleveland.com
... a 7-0 vote ... to enter into an agreement with the USDA’s wildlife division for the culling program ...survey showed that 32.7 percent of respondents strongly favored using lethal means ... 48.8 percent favored using non-lethal means, such as sterilization or contraceptives, as compared to lethal means...
Free Webinar Addresses Multi-Year Reversible Contraception For Wild Horses And Deer August 14, 2020 Botstiber Institute for Wildlife Fertility Control
... The Botstiber Institute for Wildlife Fertility Control (BIWFC) will host a free webinar addressing the development, assessment and application of PZP-22 controlled-release vaccine as a wildlife management tool, with a focus on wild horses and deer. "PZP-22: Multi-Year Reversible Contraception for Wild Horses and Deer" is scheduled for Tuesday, August 18 at 1:00 PM (EDT)... For more information or to register visit wildlifefertilitycontrol.org/pzp22/...
Oak Bay deer project off to promising start June 9, 2020 British Columbia, CHEK News
... “The only fawns we’ve seen have been from our control group of deers. So that means they’re the does that did not receive the contraceptive” ... Sixty female dear were given birth control, while a control group of 20, tagged with pink collars were left alone...
Some have lost patience with number of deer in village March 12, 2020 New York, Newsday
... Now in year two of six, the study is intended to test delivery methods and technologies for a long-lasting form of the immunocontraceptive PZP, which costs about $500 per deer to administer, plus $100 for dart-delivered annual boosters...
Hunters are thinning Fire Island's deer population this month March 7, 2020 New York, Newsday
...This appears to be the first recent hunt the National Park Service has allowed on Fire Island, a 32-mile-long barrier island that sits off Suffolk’s southern coast... the park was created in 1964, says 54 deer were hunted from 1988 to 1989; then from 1993 to 2009, immunocontraception roughly halved the number of deer ...
Oak Bay ups deer management budget to $96,100 for 2020 February 25, 2020 British Columbia, BC Local News
... The deer vaccination program will continue in Oak Bay in 2020 as the province approved $42,366 in funding ... In 2019 more than 650 Oak Bay property owners volunteered access to their properties so the Urban Wildlife Stewardship Society crew could tag and inject does with the immuno-contraceptive...
Sterilization
While spaying can be expensive, $1,000 per deer, because of high labor costs, local volunteers can bring costs down. In many states, deer contraception is illegal. Sterilization is typically 97 to 100 percent effective and only needs to be done once, but may result in the death or injury of some deer . This field surgery requires more supplies and equipment than contraception so easier access to deer such as through small roads becomes an issue. Tubal ligation requires less intervention than spaying or ovariectomy, but will result in does going into heat which may attract bucks into the area. Ovariectomy avoids this problem. A paper summarizing successes.
Follow the progress of Maryland's first deer sterilization program at Wildlife Rescue. A recent case example from New York. A program in Clifton, Ohio. A project focusing on bucks in Staten Island, New York. A website with video of the sterilization project in San Jose, California, where the deer population has declined more than desired. The project is described in this peer reviewed paper which also investigates an anomalous result from a sterilization project at Cornell.
News
Arlington, Animal Welfare League Backs Non-Lethal Approach To Deer In Arlington July 7 2023 Virginia, Patch
... Potential humane solutions to deer management include sterilization, tree caging, humane scare devices such as water sprayers, odor deterrents, or commercial repellents, according to AWLA. Sterilization was particularly effective in Fairfax City, which saw a reduction from an estimated 91 deer per square mile in 2014 to 40 deer per square mile in 2018 ...
Car crashes, Lyme disease, carcasses: What data says about the current state of deer on Staten Island January 21, 2023 New York, Staten Island Advance
official numbers show New York City’s controversial vasectomy program has had its intended effect ... the Department of Parks and Recreation published a population estimate in August putting the deer count at 1,452 — a nearly 30% drop from the project’s start in the middle of 2016 ...
Vasectomy strategy cuts Staten Island’s deer population by 30%; encouraging data on multiple fronts December 25, 2022 New York, Staten Island Advance
... the deer population reduction, coupled with a nearly 90% reduction in fawn births, gives him optimism that the program is headed in its intended direction...
South Euclid, Deer culling under way in South Euclid, with second year of sterilization to begin in February October 25, 2022 Ohio, Cleveland.com
... It was discovered a couple of months ago that deer wander further than once thought, as some tagged in South Euclid were found as far away as Pennsylvania, as well as in places such as Gates Mills and Waite Hill. Mays said that White Buffalo representatives believe that those deer are anomalies and that most don’t wander that far away...
Princeton Council awards deer management contract in efforts to control town’s deer population October 5, 2022 New Jersey, Central Jersey
... The Princeton Council has awarded a contract to White Buffalo Inc. to help control the town’s deer population, including a pilot sterilization program aimed at female deer... A dart containing a tranquilizer will be aimed at the doe, or female deer. The doe will be taken to a surgical bay and its ovaries will be removed...
South Euclid, Deer tagged in South Euclid roam far and wide; third culling season to take place September 17, 2022 Ohio, Cleveland.com
... the city became the first in the area to try a sterilization... one deer’s already in Pennsylvania, one’s in Gates Mills ... USDA sharpshooters culled 60 deer in South Euclid two seasons ago, and 101 last season...
Ann Arbor council shoots down deer management proposal in 6-5 vote February 8, 2022 Michigan, MLive
... council debated and voted 6-5 to quash a proposal to consider resuming deer culls... Council Member Travis Radina, D-3rd Ward, said he could support more vegetation studies and trying to convince the state to allow non-lethal sterilization again ...
South Euclid. Look Out For Deer With Ear Tags Coming To A Town Near You January 21, 2022 Ohio, Patch
... The city of South Euclid is conducting a deer research and population control project and have tagged the ears of 61 female deer. According to a release from the city, professionals tracked and drugged the deer ... taken to a surgical site where they were sterilized and given antibiotics and pain relievers ...
South Euclid’s pilot program sees 61 female deer sterilized; first of three-year study in using method other than culling December 29, 2021 Ohio, Cleveland.com
... nonprofit White Buffalo, Inc. sterilized 61 female deer in Wards 3 and 4 of South Euclid ... that means we avoided having 122 deer born in Wards 3 and 4 for one year ... Now we have a stable population...
South Euclid participates in multi-year deer population study December 13, 2021 Ohio, Cleveland Jewish News
... The city of South Euclid is participating in a three-to-five-year study to determine the feasibility of managing the white-tailed deer population through fertility control... Based on findings from the Clifton deer research project in Cincinnati, it is estimated the first year of operation will significantly restrict herd growth ...
South Euclid set to start deer sterilization research program Dec. 11 December 9, 2021 Ohio, Cleveland.com
... The city will soon see the beginning of a sterilization program that, if proven successful, could impact how other communities in the state or nation manage their deer population...
South Euclid prepares for deer culling in October, sterilization in December September 28, 2021 Ohio, cleveland.com
... South Euclid’s program will have a twist that its leaders are hoping will lead to a new way of managing the deer population in communities statewide, and perhaps across the country... throughout the county communities are using the old tool of shooting deer. And, from what we see statistically, that’s not an effective way to control the deer population over the long term...
Ovariectomy As a Management Technique for Suburban Deer Populations September, 2021 Wildlife Society Bulletin
... We present data from 6 surgical sterilization sites with geographically open populations in California, Maryland, Michigan, New York, Ohio, and Virginia, USA. From 2012 to 2020 we sterilized 493 deer ... Four years after initial treatment, we documented an average population reduction of ~45% (29%–56%). During the first year, the average cost per deer sterilized at locations where bait was used was US$1,185 ($927–$1,572). Surgical sterilization projects demonstrate that significant reductions in local deer densities using high-percentage, surgical sterilization programs can be achieved in non-insular locations ...
Farmington Hills council looks at regional, local deer solutions July 26, 2021 Michigan, Farmington Voice
... Council member Ken Massey pointed out most residents surveyed oppose killing deer. He suggested exploring new technologies that eliminate the deer’s ability to reproduce. Farmer said the state does not allow use of those methods, although Ann Arbor got permission to test surgical sterilization...
Ocean Township, some residents at odds over push for deer hunt approval June 1, 2021 New Jersey, Asbury Park Press
... Two years ago the town's voters supported the adoption of a deer management plan that would use non-lethal means ... include relocating the deer or sterilizing the animals... The Division of Fish & Wildlife, however, rejected the town's application ...
Staten Island, Mayor says vasectomy program is 'best approach we have' to solving borough's deer problem March 6, 2021 New York, silive.com
... “This is the single best approach, and it will have more impact over time, and we will keep funding it. We have to; we have to keep that continuity,” ... a controlled cull ... would have had “unintended consequences” and “a lot of problems,” the mayor said...
City releases new report on controversial Staten Island deer vasectomy program; is it working? March 4, 2021 New York, silive.com
... According to the city’s report, the total deer population went from an estimated 2,053 in project year one (from 2016 to 2017) to an estimated 1,555 in project year 4 (from 2019 to 2020) ...
ODNR sharpshooters have culled 31 of a planned 60 South Euclid deer February 22, 2021 Ohio, cleveland.com
... In past committee meetings, it was decided that the city would take a holistic approach to thinning the deer population... would include, in addition to utilizing sharpshooters, awaiting funding to use a sterilization method being championed by Cuyahoga County Councilwoman and South Euclid resident Sunny Simon...
Cuyahoga County considers giving $85K to South Euclid to sterilize deer December 2, 2020 Ohio, Cleveland.com
... rather than sharpshooters or bow hunters — to control the suburb’s deer population... Simon told the committee, the method could save the city money by providing a long-term solution rather than repeatedly spending money on sharpshooters...
Free Webinar Addresses Impact of Surgical Sterilization on White Tail Deer Populations November 15, 2020 Maryland, Patch
... on his six surgical sterilization sites with open populations (not fenced or island environments) ... They noted an average reduction in deer abundance of 25% from Year 1 to Year 2. At research sites with 4 years of sterilization treatment (4 sites), they noted an average total reduction of 45%... [Webinar scheduled for November 17]
Saddle River approves third deer culling contract to control herd in borough August 19, 2020 New Jersey, NorthJersey.com
... Written permission of each homeowner must be obtained before members of the nonprofit bowhunters group can enter a property... Saddle River originally approved a program of deer sterilization offered for free by an area veterinarian. However, the state eventually denied the program...
Richmond Heights council seeks best way to reduce city’s deer population August 5, 2020 Ohio, Cleveland.com
... if your issue is flowers in a neighborhood, it makes no sense to wipe out a family of deer and have 50 more come in. ... DeNicola told of how contraception or sterilization can be expensive, at a cost of about $1,000 per deer, but that it can be a more effective way of reducing the number of deer within a community...
South Euclid examines sterilization as a means to control deer population July 28, 2020 Ohio, Cleveland.com
...last October, when a survey of residents showed ... contraception or sterilization, 48.8 percent were in support... through bow hunting, perhaps 20 percent of the deer can be captured, but that through the dart/surgical method he described, he can capture 100 percent of the city’s deer. “I can sterilize all of the females ...
NYC halts Staten Island deer vasectomy program amid budget cuts July 7, 2020 New York, New York Post
... We have temporarily placed our successful deer sterilization contract on hold for FY2 ... As of April, the city said 93 percent of Staten Island’s antlered deer had been sterilized ... the price tag ballooned by nearly $1 million after the contractor said it found more deer than it had expected, with more than 2,000 counted...
New York, De Blasio to restore funding for deer vasectomies after pressed on how city would curb Island’s deer population July 8, 2020 New York, SILive
... Asked by Advance/SILive.com on Wednesday how he planned to continue curbing and maintaining the Island’s deer population when the program was still on hold, de Blasio was unable to articulate a plan for how the city would do so in lieu of the vasectomy program...
Deer population down 24% in Staten Island May 27, 2020 New York, abc7NY
... The study also found an 84% decrease in births since the program began, which is connected to the number of deer sterilized in a bid to drive down the population...
City touts another drop in Island’s deer population and has no plans yet to cut vasectomy program’s $2.5M budget during coronavirus May 27, 2020 New York,
SILive
... As of April, the city said 93% of the antlered males on Staten Island had been sterilized... The program saw the biggest population decrease of 10.4% from 2019 to 2020 when the borough’s herd dropped from 1,737 in 2019 to 1,555 in 2020...
Ann Arbor Year Four Summary Report May 26, 2020 Michigan, White Buffalo
... No sterilization efforts were conducted during Year 4 ... The overall cost of the sterilization effort was $159,815.26, over four years, resulting in a 49% reduction in deer within the 2.8 mi2 area of the SSA and NSA. Sharpshooting efforts cost $255,800.49, over the four years, resulting in a 58% reduction in deer over an 8.3 mi2 area ...
Ann Archive of More Sterilization Information and News
Relocation, Translocation
A common objection to relocation is that many deer perish as a result, since deer are flight animals and easily stressed by any constraint. A 2008 study in Texas where there had been significant experience with Trap, Transport, and Transplant concludes "reasonable survival rates can be achieved." (see research below). Costs can be as low as $150 to 200 per deer.
As the information below suggests, success varies widely depending on circumstances. Significant deer mortality may result from from the difficulty of adjusting to a new environment and the transportation stress, although wild deer are routinely transported for deer research. As with a cull, if there is ample food the remaining deer will respond with increased fertility. Also, the potential of spreading Chronic Wasting or other diseases should be considered and has prompted some states to avoid relocation strategies.
News
Cow moose dies after attempt to relocate out of Twin Falls September 14, 2023 Idaho Fish and Game
... Fish and Game staff assembled in preparation of darting the moose for relocation... Unfortunately, while under the influence of the anesthetizing drugs, the moose ran off the walking path and over the rocky cliff onto the Canyon Springs Road where she died...
Wandering bull moose is captured in downtown Santa Fe, moved to habitat in northern New Mexico September 13, 2023 New Mexico, Caledonian Record
... The moose was sedated with a tranquilizer dart and loaded onto a trailer before being evaluated by a Game and Fish Department veterinarian and determined to be in good health...
Moose On The Loose In Laramie Gets Darted, Taken To Snowies July 3, 2023 Wyoming, Cowboy State Daily
... A young bull moose wandered into Laramie early Monday and was tranquilized by game wardens ... The moose was taken to the Snowy Range Mountains and set free...
Moose, Calf Set Up Home Outside Of Day Care In Thayne, Wyoming February 22, 2023 Cowboy State Daily
... “This winter has been extraordinary in a lot of ways. Steady cold temperatures and persistent deep snow. It feels a lot like 2017, which was the worst we’ve seen around here since the winter of 1983-84.” ... Momma moose was shot with a tranquillizer gun first... off to the elk feedground ...
Video Below: Fish & Game will trap, attempt to relocate Cascade town deer. January 26, 2023 Idaho
Another milestone for zoo as sambar deer translocated to distant Dandeli January 12, 2023 Inda, The Hindu
... Dandeli is over 500 km from Mysuru. Understanding the challenges and knowing that the deer are sensitive animals, the zoo management took up the major task and achieved success like in 2019. Nine herbivores were translocated ...
City Zoo to move surplus deer to Dandeli forest November 15, 2022 India, Star of Mysore
... The 52 spotted deer that have been shifted to the Arabithittu Reserve Forest and Wildlife Sanctuary in 2019 are doing good and their population has multiplied to over 150 now... they call the shifting process as a ‘soft release’ where the cage is placed in the animal enclosure for over two months for acclimatisation...
Wandering deer causes George Washington Bridge traffic shutdown Saturday night May 29, 2022 New York, YAHOO!News
... It took police about 15 minutes to capture the deer ... Police took the deer to nearby Fort Lee Historic Park where they released it...
Idaho Fish and Game aiming to stop crop loss due to deer March 3, 2022 Twin Falls KMVT
... will now attempt to use a drop net trap to capture and relocate the deer to more suitable locations in the Magic Valley...
DWR relocates over a dozen moose in a week January 18, 2022 Utah, TownLift, Park City News
... most of which were found wandering near Interstate 80... four moose were relocated last week in more urban areas, including one at the University of Utah...
Document paints bleak picture of plan to bring Sitka black-tailed deer to Mat-Su November 19, 2021 Alaska, KTOO
... it’s pretty common for the Alaska Department of Fish and Game to transplant animals... Deer do survive in Alaska, certainly, and in some pretty cold places. But a lot of the factors that allow them to survive in colder years are kind of absent from that area of the Matanuska-Susitna Valley...
'A Very Long Way From Home': Deer Wanders Down 'Industrial' Street in Vancouver July 27, 2021 British Columbia, YAHOO!News
... “The Vancouver Police were able to gently corral the deer in an alley and a conservation officer was able to tranquilize the deer to relocate it...
Yearling moose relocated out of a Twin Falls residential neighborhood July 19, 2021 Idaho, DNR News
... The Twin Falls Police Department started receiving phone calls and reports of pictures of moose on doorbell cameras on Sunday morning ... Conservation officers and biologists from Fish and Game were called to handle the capture and relocation of the moose. The moose was safely anesthetized and released north of Carey....
Cow and calf moose relocated out of Hailey neighborhood to Silver Creek July 9, 2021 Idaho, Fish and Game News
... With permission of a homeowner, the team was able to quickly dart and anesthetize the cow in their backyard. The young calf stayed close to the cow and was easily captured... Both the cow and calf were loaded into a horse trailer and transported to the Silver Creek area where they were safely released along a creek..,
Deer tranquilized and relocated from North End June 4, 2021 Massachusetts, The Boston Globe
... Officials decided to tranquilize and relocate the doe because of the prevalence of people and activity in the area ...
McCall looks to ban feeding deer within the city June 3, 2021 Idaho, KTVB
...“They’re getting food [in McCall] so there’s no need to [migrate],” ... If the ordinance goes through, Fish and Game plans to trap and relocate the healthy deer population. This is to acclimate the deer to a natural migration pattern...
Young white-tailed deer that disperse survive the same as those that stay home March 8, 2021 Pennsylvania, Phys.org
... radio-collared hundreds of Pennsylvania deer over the last 20 years, ... about three of every four young, male white-tailed deer disperse, with yearling female dispersal rates much lower... survival rates of dispersers—males 49.9%, females 64.0%—did not differ appreciably from those of nondispersers—males 51.6%, females 70.7%. ... [published in Ecology and Evolution]
Quebec city set to kill white-tailed deer relents, will move to relocate them instead November 23, 2020 Quebec, The Canadian Press
... Goldwater, an animal rights activist, urged the city to meet with her to discuss the situation. She said the animals will be treated well and examined from "the tip of the ears to the tip of their hooves" before they are sedated and transported to a sanctuary... These deer are semi-domestic ...
Longueuil deer cull triggers protest November 14, 2020 Quebec, Global News
... "The Miller Zoo wants to take them, the animal rescue is willing to catch them and transport them," ... "We know that it's possible to move these animals because we do this many times and we have a place for them," ... the city would not change its plans despite the zoo's offer...
Idaho Fish and Game traps and relocates elk in Elmore County October 22, 2020
6 On Your Side
... The Idaho Fish & Game moved 16 elk out of Elmore County because the herd is too large, and the elk are damaging agriculture in the region... The goal was to remove 70 elk ...
Provo Municipal Council points to possible changes in urban deer contract October 8, 2020 Utah, Daily Herald
... For the past four years, the city has had a dual program of lethal and non-lethal methods of getting rid of the urban deer population... In early 2019 the Utah Division of Wildlife Resources ended transporting trapped deer to new locations because of concerns of spreading Chronic Wasting Disease ... “Looking at the numbers, I’m not persuaded it has made a difference,” said George Handley, council chairman. “I don’t see any significant reduction in traffic accidents.” ...
Comparing Survival and Movements of Non‐Urban and Urban Translocated Mule Deer CA Wright, IT Adams, P Stent, AT Ford - The Journal of Wildlife Management, 2020 British Columbia
... Annual survival of translocated deer was 0.48 and was significantly lower than survival of non‐urban deer, which was 0.77. We observed 20 of 57 collared translocated deer return to a town after translocation...
Fish and Game takes new approach to reduce Magic Valley elk population June 12, 2020 Idaho, 6 On Your Side
... Fall and spring trap and translocation to reduce the size of the depredating elk herd... Non-lethal hazing to deter elk from entering private property and depredating on crops... Nighttime sharp shooting of antlerless elk by department staff to change elk behavior and reduce herd size...
Lakeway pursues permit to trap, transport deer January 9, 2020 Texas, Austin American-Statesmen
... the first step toward a state permit application to trap, transport and transplant ... white-tailed deer ... an applicant must trap and euthanize 15 deer within the trap site, testing them for chronic wasting disease ... Parks and Wildlife requires the test results before it will issue a permit...
Committee recommends trapping, transporting excess deer population from Lakeway to west Texas December 17, 2019 Texas, KVUE
... Lakeway's Wildlife Advisory Committee (WAC) recommended to the city council that an unspecified number of deer be moved to west Texas as a way to limit the deer overpopulation across the city...Dennis Hogan, the chair of WAC, brought up the plan to trap, transport and translocate deer to west Texas. Claiming anthrax had killed off parts of the deer population in that area ...