There is one less deer in the Gordon Head cul-de-sac of Knutsford Place, as a small deer was euthanized due to serious injuries it sustained after crashing through the front window of a home.
“It’s one in a million that would happen,” said neighbour Kirsten Lorentsen, who recognizes the deer which live on her street.
On Knutsford Place, any animal with hooves are as at home as the residents.
So it came as a shock when Saanich Police showed up to the normally quiet street on Saturday, deep in the heart of the Gordon Head labyrinth, because of a deer inside a home.
Saanich Police responded to a call about a broken window at around 4 p.m., and that an animal may be trapped inside the house.
“Officers found the [broken] window and managed to gain access inside the home where they found the deer, and got it out of the house,” said Sgt. Jereme Leslie.
Noting the deer was injured, the police officer contacted the SPCA’s Wild Animal Rehabilitation Centre in Metchosin, which dispatched a local SPCA officer to pick up the animal.
According to the WILD Arc report, someone was walking their dog, which spooked the fawn, who was with its mother. The fawn ran away, and went crashing through the window of the house.
It was euthanized due to deep lacerations on one of its knees, where the ligaments and muscles were severed beyond repair, said Christina Carreres, WILD Arc senior wildlife rehabilitator.
“It’s an unusual one, [but] deer are an ultimate prey species – they bolt, and when they do that they aren’t processing information,” Carerres said. “When the fear kicks in they do interesting things.”
It’s a tragic chapter in the story of urban sprawl verses nature, though in this case, many deer have returned to Gordon Head after being chased out during development in the 1960s.
While the deer may be prolific raiders of Lorentsen’s garden, she doesn’t wish any ill will towards the animals — she just wants to keep them out.
“They live here, in our yard and on the street. But they’re cuter when they’re in the neighbour’s yard. They eat flowers, all our beans, the leaves off our plum tree [but not the plums],” she said.
