April 8, 2009 letter to the governor, click here.
April 14, 2009 answer from the governor, click here.
April 8, 2009 letter to Idaho Fish and Game is on this page below:
April 23, 2009 answer from Fish and Game, click here.
Calvin Leman
305 Washington Street
Salmon, ID 83467
208-756-4104 phone or fax
Mr. Cal Groen
Idaho Fish and Game
P.O. Box 25
Boise, ID 83707
April 7, 2009
Dear Mr. Groen:
I make complaint and report depredation and property loss from deer at 305 Washington Street in Salmon, near the Lemhi County Brooklyn Annex. We apply the section of 36-1108, which specifies that deer are about to do damage, again.
This depredation has found no solution in spite of Salmon citizen efforts, since 2005.[i] We are aware that crop damage by deer is occurring in other cities in Idaho[ii] and in other states[iii]--and of the solutions[iv] they have used. Salmon citizens like Iris Andersen and June DeBoard, who have had gardens for years, no longer can, because deer destroy their entire gardens now. They asked F&G and the Salmon City council for help last year. They got no help.[v]
Deer suffer too because they don’t get the nutrients they need from the plants they eat in town and can’t find food in winter in town. Deer can be injured by eating insecticide-treated plants, which may be in town. Deer will eat almost any plant or anything else, when they are hungry. Deer had to be sacrificed at the Grand Canyon[vi] after eating trash and plastic, which blocked their digestive systems and made the deer unable to process food.
Deer/vehicle accidents and other safety issues occur, when too many deer are in towns.[vii] Deer ticks (Lyme disease from these ticks can infect people), and other deer diseases are a part of this problem. Because hunting is prohibited in the city and because the deer have no predators[viii] in the city, the number of deer in the city has increased to a deplorable number. A doe leading a fawn down Washington Street last summer shows one reason this problem is getting worse. Deer have learned that they have no predators in town. Deer predators: mountain lions, coyotes, bears, foxes, bobcats, and wolves have not come to town, yet. On the other hand, some persons say they see bears and wolves in town. Land carrying capacity for deer and deer being displaced by urban development, as in other cities, are not a part of Salmon’s problem, because millions of acres of wild-land surround Salmon.
This complaint follows Idaho Code:[ix] 36-1108. Control of damage by antelope, elk, deer or moose -- Compensation for damages. (a) Prevention of depredation shall be a priority management objective of the department, and it is the obligation of landowners to take all reasonable steps to prevent property loss from wildlife or to mitigate damages by wildlife.
We have applied all the deterrents that F&G department told us to use: Hot sauce, shock tube, lights, motion detect for sound and water stream, and BB gun. We have also gone out at all hours of the night to chase them from the orchard. Depredation by deer of trees, which are grown for food and for sale, continues. Deer have[x] and are about to destroy property. Deer damaged more than 100 shade trees and conifers and more than 40 fruit trees in 2007 and 2008. Damage in 2009 is occurring now. On April 5, 2009, a deer ripped the growing tip off a young ponderosa, just 10 feet from the house. Deer ate the tip of nearly every branch of every tree. Examples are shown in end note X below.
From our house we see the deer damaging Lyle's property to the west, as they come down the mountain, then damage our property, then damage Christine's property to the east, as the deer move down the hill toward Iris’s, Vince’s, and Linda’s, or back up the hill to June’s garden, which is described in the first footnote.
The dismay that many Salmon voters have for F&G can change to respect for F&G, when F&G stops the deer from destroying their property.
Humane ways to control deer in Salmon include providing quality habitat along the paths that deer follow when coming to town.[xi] Deer will not come to town if they can find food elsewhere. Deer fence around each property is humane but is not sensible because of the number of people, whose property is damaged by deer, by the cost of fencing,[xii] by the sight of a fence around their homes, the number of gates needed, and by the large number of deer that come to town. Fencing will not stop Lyme disease or deer-vehicle and other accidents. Although 36-1108 states that the director may: Send a representative onto the premises to control, trap, and/or remove such animals as will stop the damage to said property, the people of Salmon may be able to help with any common-sense plan that will stop the damage to their property that the deer are causing-- each year getting worse.
Sincerely,
Calvin B. Leman
CC Governor Butch Otter Senator Jeff Siddoway
Office of the Governor Idaho State Legislature
Post Office Box 83720. 1764 E 1200 N
Boise, ID 83720-0034. Terreton, ID 83450
208-334-2100 208-663-4585
PS You can click on the links you see in this paper copy at
http://votingpeoplehelpingpeople.com/Deer/Groen.htm
[i] Salmon Deer from 2005 to 2008
RESIDENT DEER HERD
Tuesday, December 13, 2005 at 2:30 PM
A first step has been taken towards finding solutions to the resident deer herd problem. The action took place at the December 7 meeting of the Salmon City Council. In response to previous reports concerning damages being caused by deer, a committee was formed in December of 2005 to study the situation and work with the Fish and Game Department on finding possible solutions. Further complaints were lodged before the council in the spring of 2006 and more research was done on what measures have been taken by other towns facing the same problems.
DEER PROBLEMS FOR SENIORS
Monday, August 11, 2008 at 5:05 PM
The
number of deer roaming the city’s streets and yards has once again
become a topic of discussion before the Salmon City Council.
Iris Andersen and June DeBoard each spoke before the August 6 meeting of
the council and each complained of the damages deer are inflicting on
their gardens. Andersen said she has gotten nowhere from talking with
the Fish and Game Department or with Mayor John Miller. She quoted the
Fish and Game as saying the mayor wouldn’t let the agency do anything
about the deer so she approached the city. She said, “I called the
mayor and he’s on the deer’s side.”
Andersen said there are many senior citizens in town who depend on their
gardens for the winter’s supply of canned goods and the deer situation
is especially hard on them. Andersen also cited the loss of her rose
garden and everything else in her front yard. “It’s just maddening.
There’s too many deer. They’re too thick.”
DeBoard stated she has always had a large vegetable garden but this year
it has been overrun by the deer. She has not only lost the food she has
lost her financial investment in seeds and water bills.
[ii]
JANUARY 7, 2009
Deer crossing
Humans drive wildlife into urban Boise living
http://www.boiseweekly.com/gyrobase/Content?oid=oid%3A320090
Controlling Deer in Urban & Suburban Areas
If you've been seeing more deer in and around the Coeur d'Alene community, you are not alone. The City of Coeur d'Alene continues to hear about numerous incidents where deer have become a nuisance in residential areas. They have caused damage to structures and landscaping, they pose safety concerns, and they are the primary carriers of the ticks that cause Lyme disease.
http://www.cdaid.org/index.php?module=pagemaster&PAGE_user_op=view_page&PAGE_id=174
[iii] http://www.ct.gov/dph/lib/dph/urbandeer07.pdf
http://www.cityofames.org/police/UrbanDeerManagement/UrbanDeerRules.htm
Part 1 1996 story about urban deer Problems in Chincoteague Va.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7w8jlyyhc74&feature=related
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V0x9XdsHgRk&feature=related
Part 2...1996 story about urban deer problems in Virginia
Helena Police Department works to control city's urban deer population
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=45zMqlyRUjI
[iv] A Guide to Deer Management in Developed Areas of Pennsylvania
Deer Management Montgomery County, Maryland
Lake County Forest Preserve
http://www.lcfpd.org/nature_net/index.cfm?fuseaction=nature.deer
[v] Personal communication with Iris Andersen: She said she asked the city council and F&G for help. She got no help, she said. F&G told her that they can’t do anything about the deer because the mayor won’t let them, Iris said. She said that the mayor told her he likes the deer and puts spoiled fruit and other food out for them to eat. The mayor told her to get a dog or put up a fence.
Idaho statutes says this about dogs and deer at 36:1102:
6. Regulation of Dogs.
(A) No person shall make use of a dog for the purpose of pursuing, taking or killing any of the big game animals of this state except as otherwise provided by rules of the commission.
(B) Any person who is the owner of, or in possession of, or who harbors any dog found running at large and which is actively tracking, pursuing, harassing or attacking, or which injures or kills deer or any other big game animal within this state shall be guilty as provided in section 36-1401(a)1.(F), Idaho Code. It shall be no defense that such dog or dogs were pursuing said big game animals without the aid or direction of the owner, possessor, or harborer.
(C) Any dog found running at large and which is actively tracking, pursuing, harassing, attacking or killing deer or any other big game animal may be destroyed without criminal or civil liability by the director, or any peace officer, or other persons authorized to enforce the Idaho fish and game laws.
http://www.legislature.idaho.gov/idstat/Title36/T36CH11SECT36-1101.htm
The Western Association of Fish and Wildlife Agencies says this about humans feeding the deer:
The Western Association of Fish and Wildlife Agencies in their publication Mule Deer: Changing Landscapes, Changing Perspectives, on page 25 Supplemental feeding—Just Say No shows the harm to deer that supplemental feeding of this ruminant with a 4-part stomach causes. On page 26 they say: Mule deer and other big game animals that are fed by humans tend to concentrate at feeding sites, where disease outbreaks can affect a large number of animals. Mule deer are susceptible to chronic wasting disease and easily spread tuberculosis in crowded conditions.
Resident Deer Population in Salmon
For years, deer have been displaced from their winter range by cattle in the riparian areas around Salmon. This created a resident deer population in Salmon. The deer spend their days in vacant fields near Salmon and feed in the city at night. Instead of feeding when they normally do, they feed from midnight till 5:00 AM, when less traffic is in Salmon. In spring and summer, the deer are feeding at anytime during the day. As their numbers keep increasing, the deer will be in Salmon all day and all night.
F&G could trap and remove these deer at their daytime habitat in the fields near Salmon. Radio collars on the deer could help locate these daytime deer havens, or they could just look for them. One of these havens is just up Washington Street.
[vii] Game wardens in Helena, Montana, shot a record number of deer in city limits in 2005 after the animals threatened residents, cornering a paperboy and charging pedestrians. Officials instituted the sharp-shooting policy on aggressive deer last year for the first time in the city's history, arguing the animals were endangering the public.
"It's a safety issue," said Helena City Manager Tim Burton. "We've had animals jumping off parking structures, animals crashing through plate-glass windows, animals goring pets to death."
Urban Deer Culled in Montana Capital
Published: September 29, 2008 in the New York Times
Adult deer caught in the traps are killed instantly with a bolt gun, similar to the device used to kill cows in slaughterhouses. The animals are then taken to a state Fish, Wildlife and Parks center, butchered and their meat donated to the needy.
In Utah, the Thiokol Plant does not allow hunting. The mule deer bucks get big with big horns. If this happens in Salmon, we could have safety issues worse than they had in Helena.
http://www.outdoorsmenforum.ca/showthread.php?p=256873
[ix] TITLE 36
FISH AND GAME
CHAPTER 11
PROTECTION OF ANIMALS AND BIRDS
36-1108.Control of damage by antelope, elk, deer or moose -- Compensation for damages. (a) Prevention of depredation shall be a priority management objective of the department, and it is the obligation of landowners to take all reasonable steps to prevent property loss from wildlife or to mitigate damages by wildlife. When any antelope, elk, deer or moose is doing damage to or is destroying any property or is about to do so, the owner or lessee thereof may make complaint and report the facts to the director or his designee who shall, within seventy-two (72) hours, investigate the conditions complained of. If it appears that the complaint is well founded and the property of the complainant is being or is likely to be damaged or destroyed by such antelope, elk, deer or moose, the director may:
1. Send a representative onto the premises to control, trap, and/or remove such animals as will stop the damage to said property. Any animals so taken shall remain the property of the state and shall be turned over to the director.
2. Grant properly safeguarded permission to the complainant to control, trap and/or remove such animals. Any animals so taken shall remain the property of the state and shall be turned over to the director.
3. Make an agreement with the owner or lessee to allow continued use of lands by the animals where damage by them has occurred to stored, growing or matured crops on private property whether owned or leased. This agreement may be transacted only after department attempts to resolve the problem by other means have proven unsuccessful. The agreement made under the provisions of this subsection may provide for financial compensation to the owner or lessee. If made, financial compensation under the provisions of this subsection shall be governed by the provisions of section 36-115, Idaho Code, and shall not be in addition to any payments for the same crop losses from any other source. Compensation for damages under the provisions of this subsection shall be available for damages done to private lands, whether owned or leased, if the owner or lessee allowed hunters reasonable access to the property or through the property to public lands for hunting purposes during the preceding hunting season. This provision shall not negate the provisions of section 36-1602, Idaho Code, relating to the necessity of obtaining permission to enter private land. If necessary, the arbitration panel provided for in subsection (b) of this section shall determine the reasonableness of access allowed.
(b) 1. In order to establish eligibility for submission of claims for damages, persons suffering crop damages on privately owned or leased land caused by antelope, elk, deer or moose must:
(A) Notify the department within seventy-two (72) hours of discovery of damage.
(B) Follow up verbal notification with a written notice within ten (10) days of the discovery of damages.
(C) The department shall not be held liable or accountable for any damages occurring more than ten (10) days prior to the initial notification of damage. However, the department may extend the period up to thirty (30) days under exceptional circumstances.
The owner or lessee must have allowed hunters reasonable access to the property or through the property to public lands for hunting purposes during the preceding hunting season, provided such access does not impact on their operations, or the claim for damages shall be disallowed. Compensation for crop damages claims shall not be in addition to any payments for the same crop losses from any other source and shall not include fence or other types of property damage. While fences and irrigation equipment are not subject to claim for payment, the department is allowed to provide support and assistance, including provision of materials to design, construct, and maintain fences for control of depredation. The notice of damages caused must be in written form, shall be in the form of a claim for damages substantially the same as required by section 6-907, Idaho Code, shall be attested to by the claimant under oath, and the claim shall be at least one thousand dollars ($1,000). The claim shall not be amended after it is filed, provided however, that a claimant may file an additional claim in the event additional damage occurs subsequent to filing the initial claim. The department shall prepare and make available suitable forms for notice and claim for damages. Claims may be submitted only for the fiscal year (July 1 through June 30) in which they occurred. Any person submitting a fraudulent claim shall be prosecuted for a felony as provided in section 18-2706, Idaho Code. For purposes of this subsection, crop damages shall mean damage to plants grown or stored for profit and exclude ornamental plants.
2. Upon receipt by the department, the department shall review the claim, and if approved, pay it as provided in section 36-115, Idaho Code, or order it paid as provided in section 36-115, Idaho Code. Failure on the part of the owner or lessee to allow on-site access for inspection and investigation of alleged losses shall void the claim for damages.
3. In the event the owner or lessee and the department fail to agree on the amount of damages within fifteen (15) business days of the written claim, either party may elect to retain the services of an independent certified insurance adjuster licensed in the state of Idaho to view the affected property and determine the amount of damages. In the event the owner or lessee and the department fail to agree on the amount of damages and neither party elects to retain the services of an independent certified insurance adjuster, provisions of subsection (b)4. of this section shall apply. The independent certified adjuster shall complete his review and determination within twenty (20) days from the date he is retained, and will report his determination in writing by certified mail to the department and to the owner or lessee. Neither the owner or lessee, nor the department, shall disturb the affected property prior to review and determination by the independent insurance adjuster. Costs associated with the services of the independent insurance adjuster shall be divided equally between the owner or lessee and the department, subject to reapportionment of the costs by an arbitration panel pursuant to the provisions of subsection (b)4. of this section. If the department, or the owner or lessee rejects the determination of the adjuster, they shall notify the other party in writing of the rejection within five (5) business days of receipt of the adjuster’s determination. In the event that either party rejects the adjuster’s determination, the provisions of subsection (b)4. of this section shall apply.
4. Within five (5) business days of a rejection of an adjuster’s determination of damages or failure of the owner or lessee and the department to agree on damages when a certified insurance adjuster is not used, the director must convene an arbitration panel. To convene an arbitration panel, the director must, within five (5) business days, appoint the department’s representative and notify the landholder of the appointment. The landholder(s) shall, within the next five (5) business days following such notice from the department, appoint his representative and notify the department of the appointment. Within the next five (5) business days, the department representative and the landholder must mutually appoint the third arbitrator. The arbitration panel shall consist of three (3) members, as follows:
(A) The director of the department of fish and game or his designee;
(B) The owner or his designee, or the lessee or his designee;
(C) One (1) member selected by the two (2) members above.
The panel shall convene within thirty (30) days of the selection of the third arbitrator, and render its decision within fourteen (14) days after the hearing. When convened, the arbitration panel shall have the same authority to make on-site inspections as the department. The owner or lessee shall be responsible for payment of the expenses of his appointee; the director shall pay the expenses of his appointee from the expendable big game depredation fund; and the expenses of the third member shall be a joint responsibility of the owner or lessee, and the department. Provided however, the panel is authorized to review the costs associated with retaining the independent insurance adjuster and to determine whether those costs should instead be borne solely by the owner or lessee, solely by the department, or be apportioned between the owner or lessee and the department. In cases where an independent insurance adjuster was used, the party electing to use the adjuster shall assume the insurance adjuster’s determination of damage as their estimate of damage. The panel shall consider the claim submitted by the owner or lessee, and the estimate of damages submitted by the department, and shall select one (1) amount or the other as being the closest to the actual damages sustained by the claimant. The arbitration panel shall report its decision in writing to both the owner or lessee and to the department within ten (10) days of the decision, and the decision of the panel shall be binding on the owner or lessee and the department. The fish and game advisory committee shall develop guidelines to govern arbitration procedures in accordance with chapter 52, title 67, Idaho Code.
(c) Any claim received by the department under the provisions of subsection (b) of this section must be processed by the department within sixty (60) calendar days of receipt. If the claim is approved for payment, payment must be made within forty-five (45) calendar days of such approval. Any damage claim determination by an independent insurance adjuster pursuant to subsection (b)3. of this section, accepted by the parties, must be paid by the department within forty-five (45) calendar days of the determination. If the claim is arbitrated, the arbitration must be completed within one hundred eighty (180) calendar days of filing the claim for such damages
[x] Deer damaging property at 305 Washington Street in December 2008. (all times are AM)
December 12: 11:06 PM 2 Doe
December 13: 1:20 AM 7 Doe; 5:06 AM 1 4-pt buck
December 16: 7:31 AM 3 doe
December 17: 2:47 AM 2 doe; 4:05 AM 1 doe; 4:45 AM 1 buck; 5:04 AM 1 buck
December 18: 4:43 AM 2 doe
December 19: 3:37 AM 3 doe; 4:26 AM 2 doe; 4:56 AM 2 doe
Three doe damaging the orchard at 305 Washington Street on 12/13/2008 at 2:03 AM is shown at
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BDO2v8oq-Ko
Examples of Damage to Fruit Trees.
From one to seven deer have caused this damage, in spite of the deer deterrents that Fish and Game recommends.
Buck-rubbed tree
Every branch of fruit tree ripped off by deer
Close-up to show deer ripped branch ends.
Branches ripped off by deer.
[xi] Improving Deer Habitat Through Forest Regeneration
A lot if information is out there to describe how to install food plots. Food plot installation is great for improving deer habitat, but it’s only half the battle. This article will discuss how to improve your woods to provide food and cover and turn your property into a deer magnet.
http://www.chilcoteforester.com/DeerHabitat.html
The answer to improving deer numbers on any property is to provide them with quality habitat.
http://www.deeranddeerhunting.com/article/CoyoteKill/
[xii] Cost of fence is too much for senior citizens and for poor people, who are barely able to pay their bills in this economy. These are the people who suffer most from the deer in Salmon.
Fences can harm deer. The search “deer caught in fence” on youtube.com shows how fences can harm deer. Here are a few of these:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k_-mqGWwqzM
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uQxctvlpQ3Y
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3lJL99yw2Ts
In the Western Association of Fish & Wildlife Agencies publication Habitat Guidelines for Mule Deer, Northern Forest Ecoregion, on page 26, they show the harm to mule deer that fences cause. A google search of “deer caught in fence” shows this problem too.
Deer can harm people.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z-_iIbxRgz0
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9KmQkbdGyb8
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e7yvBXnVySs