Oh Deer! Four-legged Friends Are Not As Shy As They Used To Be

About a week after concerned residents began to guard their small pets after learning that local police were forced to kill a coyote on Mitchell Place, residents are starting to realize another problem that is occurring. Though less menacing than coyotes, deer are starting to become an issue in some neighborhoods

"We eventually fenced in our vegetables," said Linda Abella of Garden Street. Parts of her sizable garden were being eaten on a regular basis, becoming a regular salad bar for the deer.

She eventually realized she had to take action. But that still doesn't mean that her other plants are safe. She has about 90 feet of hosta plants that also have fallen prey to the herbivores. Any other of her plants, she states, get "mowed down on a regular basis."

In addition to munching on her garden, the deer have apparently become quite comfortable on Abella's property as well. Her neighbors have mentioned watching some of the deer take naps on her front porch when she is away.

While she does mention about the destruction of her grounds and not being able to plant tulips, which she dubbed "deer lollipops," being irritating, her main concern is with deer ticks.

With a 13-year-old daughter to worry about playing outside, Lyme disease is a concern. "We need the balance," she said. She comments how relocating the deer might be a viable option. "We're moving into their world, so they're moving into ours...They're living happily in this Garden of Eden."

Elaine Oshust of Bloomingdale Ave also mentioned some concerns with the deer population.

"One deer was rubbing on a tree in the sidewalk," Oshust said.

When a deer rubs, it is essentially making an effort to get rid of the velvet that coats the antlers or to leave their scent on the tree as a challenge to other bucks. This becomes a problem when the deer go after the saplings, which can greatly damage the tree.

“Right now, we see them all over,” she states. “They seem to like geraniums.”

While Oshust has a high fence that keeps the deer out of her garden, she does have to worry about the potted plants on her front porch.

Oshust worries about the traffic along Bloomingdale Avenue School. When school starts, drivers run the risk of hitting the extra deer running around the area when dropping off and picking up their children and should use extra caution.

Carol Berns of Doering Way expresses a concern about the deer from the standpoint of a citizen as well as a member of the Environmental Commision.

“We’re pretty close to [Nomahegan Park]. The deer do come in. They’ve been eating flowers,” Berns said.

Normally, she leaves her house around 5:30 a.m. for work, only to see up to five deer standing in the road.

“They’re not aggressive but, on the other hand, they’re not really shy.”

All had different reactions on how to control the population. Abella mentioned that she hopes relocation would help the population in the immediate area. Oshust talks about learning to live with them and simply plant vegetation that the deer will not go after. Berns mentioned that the Environmental Commission talked about a deer hunt.

“[The deer] are very nice, which makes it so hard to say we have to kill them,” Berns said.

While there is no black and white solution to the deer population problem, it is an issue that Cranford is quickly starting to realize needs to be addressed.