Royal Oak Officials Take Aim at Deer in Cemetery

Royal Oak, MI — City officials deliberated Monday evening on how to best manage the deer roaming through a cemetery near downtown.

Royal Oak city commissioners, following the recommendation of city staff, voted in favor of providing a residential education program that would instruct residents not to feed local wildlife.
The city will also provide landscape workshops to teach residents about certain plants that would discourage deer from entering their yards.

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The city did not vote to cull or sterilize the deer.

Royal Oak city engagement specialist Judy Davids, who’s witnessed a deer enter her own back yard, told Patch that ending the supplemental feeding will, in time, force the deer to find food outside of the city.
“It’s widely known that residents are feeding the deer in the winter months,” Davids said.

While acknowledging the beauty of the wildlife, Davids said attracting deer to the city is harmful for both people and animals.
“Turning Royal Oak into a deer sanctuary is not an option”, she said.

In the future, the commissioners may consider enacting ordinances against feeding wildlife.

Image credit: Nakae via Flickr / licensed under Creative Commons