A doe lingers around the area newborn fawn was killed by a dog early Tuesday morning on the River Valley Trail. The Conservation Officer Service is looking for the dog and its owner.
Conservation officers search for woman after dog killed fawn
By Ken MacInnis - Williams Lake Tribune
Published: June 24, 2008 12:00 PM
Updated: June 25, 2008 7:59 AM
The Conservation Officer Service in Williams Lake is looking for a German Shepherd and its owner after a newborn mule deer fawn was attacked and killed early Tuesday morning on the River Valley Trail.
An employee at Tolko's Creekside mill witnessed the incident from the other side of the river at around 5:30 a.m. He said a German shepherd dog chased and cornered the fawn against the fence near the settling ponds, and attacked it.
Three times, he said, the fawn's mother tried to intervene, and the dog chased it away. The dog returned a fourth time to chew on the fawn once it was dead, conservation officer Andrew Anaka said.
"The (dog's) owner watched all this happen, and didn't interfere," he said. "She had four opportunities to intervene, and chose not to."
Once the Tolko employee got the woman's attention, he said, she leashed the dog and left the area.
The COS is looking for the woman, described as "fortyish" with an average height and an average build. She is believed to ride a mountain bike regularly on the River Valley Trail.
The Conservation Officer Service is also looking for the dog, a black and tan purebred German shepherd.
A City of Williams Lake bylaw requires dogs to be leashed and under control on the River Valley Trail, and the Wildlife Act prohibits anyone allowing or causing their dog to pursue wildlife.
The penalty for contravening that part of the Act is up to a $10,000 fine or six months in jail.
"When officers attended the scene, they could see the doe in very close proximity to the dead fawn," Anaka said. "It was very reluctant to leave."
The fawn was no more than a week old, he added.
"This is the time of year mule deer have their fawns. They are extremely susceptible to dogs chasing them."
Anaka said people need to remember there are deer all around and in Williams Lake, and that pet owners must have control of their dogs at all times, "whether at home or on the River Valley Trail."
Anyone with information about the woman or the dog, or who witnesses dogs chasing wildlife and other contraventions of the Wildlife Act is asked to call the Report All Poachers and Polluters (RAPP) line at 1-877-952-7277, or #7277 on the TELUS Mobility Network.
