Town Deer Herd Diminished
Written by Andrew-Rossi on February 28, 2018
Cody’s town deer herd has been thinned just a bit.
In an ongoing effort to manage the mule deer that live in the City limits, the Cody City Council last month directed the Police Department to cull 50 deer from the herd. While the Council was split on its vote to approve the project, ultimately the decision was made with the intention of reducing the number of human-wildlife conflicts and improving the health of the remaining deer.
With the cooperation of the Wyoming Game and Fish Department, Sergeant Trapp Heydenberk with the Cody PD led a team of officers on a mission to harvest 50 deer between January 17 and February 15. At yesterday’s Council work session, Police Chief Chuck Baker reported that the project was successfully completed on January 31st, and came in under budget.
Baker says that all the animals tested negative for Chronic Wasting Disease, and all the meat was donated to local residents.
Council members expressed their approval of the manner in which the deer reduction project was carried out. Council President Landon Greer said that one of his objections to the project was the expense, so the fact that the actions were carried out under budget was helpful.
The Game and Fish permit allows for the taking of 150 animals in this calendar year, but Council only approved 50. However, discussion did take place regarding the possibility of culling 50 more in November.
