At the Morris Arboretum in Philadelphia, PA, it's not uncommon to see a deer get caught in between the iron fences that enclose the area. Or worse-- to see the deer who get caught on the sharp spikes on the top of the fence. I've personally seen this happen (and advocated!!!) 3 times with the deer struggling and still alive. This recent instance of June 2018, the Philadelphia police were called 3 times, and when they finally arrived to supervise the situation, they had to follow policy. In other words, the living deer hung/struggled on the fence for roughly 1.5 hours with the police standing by, attracting crowds which stressed the young buck out even more. Every time someone came closer, he got scared and kicked which made his injuries worse. The bleeding from his head is a broken antler, likely from repetitive banging his head on the fence upon getting stuck. He was too worn out to act distressed any longer because chances are he's been out in this summer heat/no shade for HOURS. The police would not put him out of his pain and misery, but instead had to call SWAT to come do it. SWAT took an hour to show up to do their job. Unfortunately for the deer, it was too long to wait and suffer. It was a heart wrenching, painfully long experience to witness. An experienced hunter offered to end it's life in a quick/easy way in the very beginning, or lift it off the fence to see if it had a chance at life (to be rehabbed), but police did not allow it. The deer was forced to stay there until SWAT came. Just moments before SWAT arrived, the deer finally passed away. HOW DO WE STOP THIS FROM BEING A COMMON OCCURRENCE? Sign my petition to convince Morris Arboretum to change their fences! Whether they add caps to the sharp points on top, or get new fences altogether. Something has to change! Yes, deer do die everyday, but they should not die like this. I believe this is very preventable, and an easy fix! Use Morris Arboretum's donation money towards the fences and help encourage it to be a TRUE nature-loving place to visit!!!!
