Deer in the crosshairs as Oak Bay, B.C., considers cull of aggressive creatures

OAK BAY, B.C. – Bambi’s days may be numbered in the Victoria-area suburb of Oak Bay, B.C.

Councillors in the southern Vancouver Island municipality have voted to add a cull to the list of measures available to deal with habituated deer.

Oak Bay will also continue trying to cut confrontations through better education to discourage feeding, repellents, improved signs warning of nearby deer and lower speed limits to reduce the chance of collisions.

Coun. Michelle Kirby says it could take up to a year for the Capital Regional District to create a plan adding a cull to Oak Bay’s deer management strategy.

In response to concerns about aggressive deer threatening people or pets, the southeastern B.C. cities of Cranbrook, Kimberley and Invermere have each conducted at least one deer cull since 2011.

Legal action launched in Invermere by opponents of the cull slowed the lethal measures last year, but Cranbrook council voted in February to push ahead with a cull of up to 30 mule deer, although it said further details surrounding the population reduction activities would not be released. (CFAX)

—