11/23/2008

Associated Press

It seems some Jacksonville residents have come to love the town's black-tailed deer to death.

The deer, which roam the streets freely, are feeding on piles of corn left by well-meaning animal lovers, and some of the creatures have dropped lifeless on neighborhood lawns.

Steve Niemela, an Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife biologist, said the deer are dying because they cannot digest the high-carbohydrate feed.

"We're constantly getting a steady stream of sick and injured wildlife," he said.

Niemela and other state wildlife biologists are planning to ask Jacksonville leaders to ban feeding deer within city limits, and those who break the law would have to pay a fine.

But Mayor-elect Bruce Garrett said he is leery about adding such a restriction within city limits without evidence of a corn-cause epidemic.

He also said biologists' effort to educate the public on the dangers of feeding deer could backfire. Jacksonville residents who despise the deer could use corn as a weapon, he said.

"You'd probably get people who realize, if it would get rid of the deer, they'd start feeding them," Garrett said.

Meanwhile, a similar ordinance was passed earlier this month in Philomath.

Deers that eat corn can suffer from intense diarrhea and secondary infections that lead to internal hemorrhaging, kidney failure, dehydration and death, Niemela said.

Dead animals with such symptoms have been found in the east Medford foothills, rural Grants Pass and other areas with large deer populations, he said.

Niemela said he is investigating at least eight recent deer deaths in and around Jacksonville, and dead animals with similar symptoms have been found in the east Medford foothills, rural Grants Pass and other areas with large deer populations.

"Mostly we're trying to educate people to stop feeding animals, especially feeds with a lot of carbohydrates, like corn," Niemela said.

Still, a law determining what kind of food people can have in their backyards seems ridiculous, some say.

"People are going to do what they're going to do," says Jessica Bennington, a downtown barista. "You can't make a law against everything. That's just stupid."

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Information from: Mail Tribune, http://www.mailtribune.com/