Growing up in BFE, we’d always have problems with raccoons, possums, and armadillos making their way around the front of our house and digging around for no apparent reason, so the best way to get ’em to leave?
Just take a broom and shew them away (no, we did not put a bullet between their eyes).
A broom is a safe tactic to get these creatures to stay away, at least for a short period of time before we have to start the process all over again.
However, what I would NOT recommend, is using a broom to scare a buck away.
The Georgia Wildlife Resources Division recently shared a wild video, of a man in Newton, County, Georgia, who got brutally attacked by a buck after he tried to scare it away with a broom.
However, here’s there’s a kicker in this scenario… the poor buck had been illegally hand-raised by humans, and was no longer afraid of human interaction.
It may sound counter intuitive, but feeding wildlife can unfortunately be a death sentence for animal involved. It learns to rely on humans for food, it’s instincts to run from predators, including humans, goes out the window, and it become aggressive and dangerous as it grows up… especially during the rut.
And once that pattern of behavior is established, it won’t be long for before someone from wildlife management services or the parks department comes to euthanize the animal.
Long story short… don’t feed wild animals unless you essentially want to ruin the animal. Not to mention, it can be illegal depending on that location.
Back to our Georgia man…
A resident of the area heard a commotion on their back patio, and came outside to find this young buck ramming its antlers around their grill.
An unidentified man came over to help shoo the deer away with a broom, not knowing that it was an aggressive young buck who was hand fed since it was a fawn.
In the post, the division shares that:
“That wasn’t the first tactic used to scare this buck off. Two residents of Newton County came face to face with a buck who had been illegally hand-raised, and thus had lost its fear of humans.
One resident heard a loud commotion on their back patio, and saw the buck, who had waltzed into their backyard, using its antlers to bash around their grill. The resident attempted to yell at the buck to frighten it off (which should have been more than enough), but the buck paid the resident no attention and went back to ramming the grill.
Enter broom guy (let’s call him George): George (who has NO knowledge that this deer has been illegally hand-raised) came out to help shoo the buck away, and brought a broom with him.
There was no intention to harm the deer. George first attempted to yell at the buck and wave the broom high in the air to scare the deer, but again the buck paid him no mind and continued using his sharp, hardened antlers on the resident’s grill.”
Then comes the charge…
“Only then did George swing the broom at the buck, thinking surely the deer would back off. As you can see, that’s not how the story ended. George spent 8 hours in the ER, receiving stitches to his forearm after being gored by the illegally hand-raised and aggressive buck.
While this buck had shown no prior aggression, he was a recognized guest amongst area residents. As a growing fawn, the act of feeding and interacting with this deer seemed harmless. However, as the buck matured, the testosterone kicked in.
As testosterone levels rise, antlers mineralize and harden and bucks increase their sparring frequency and intensity to establish dominance and breeding rights. In the wild, deer ensure their distance from humans. Once that fear of people has dissipated, however, an aggressive, testosterone filled buck can become extremely dangerous. Unfortunately, we see situations such as this occur every year.”
And this poor guy took an antler to the arm because someone thought a deer would make a good pet.
Turns out… it’s very illegal and detrimental to the deer:
“In Georgia, it is ILLEGAL to keep wild deer as pets. Habituating and humanizing deer has serious and dangerous consequences for both humans and the animal.
Far too often, fawns are illegally hand-raised after being mistaken as orphans because of does’ natural behavior of leaving them for extended periods of time.
While well-intended, the improper care of a wild animal often results in an early death or a life in captivity. In the state of Georgia, you must be LICENSED to rehabilitate wildlife.”
As mentioned above, the attempt to scare the buck away didn’t end too well, as the man had to spend eight hours in the ER, getting multiple stitches to his forearm after being gored by the creature.
Of course, he was just trying to help out a neighbor, but thankfully he was gored in a vital organ.
In the state of Georgia, it is illegal for humans to keep deer as pets, as it can present a danger to both humans and the deer, and you must be licensed to “rehabilitate wildlife.”
