Deer wearing collar and marked ‘pet’ raises eyebrows in Missouri. ‘Unbelievable!!’

A deer fitted with a collar and marked as a “pet” was recently spotted in rural Missouri, raising eyebrows among residents and concerning wildlife officials.

The buck was seen near the town of De Soto, roughly 35 miles southwest of St. Louis, the Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office said in an Oct. 8 Facebook post, sharing a photo of the animal.

It appears someone placed a collar on the buck’s neck and then painted the word “pet” on its side in bold letters, the photo shows.

The sheriff’s office used the opportunity as a teachable moment, an example of what not to do and how not to treat wildlife.

Some echoed that sentiment, calling the situation “unbelievable!!”

“Wait till some kids see this, walk up and think it’s ok to pet this fella,” a comment said. “Then y’all gonna have a whole other problem.”

But many were quick to disagree.

“Now the government is telling us what animals we can save and pets to have,” one commenter wrote.

Though the deer turned into a constitutional debate for some, most defenders simply felt that whoever attempted to tame the deer wasn’t hurting anything.

“They just don’t want their friend shot,” a comment said, referring to the graffiti on the deer’s side.

“At least it has a collar on,” read another. “Half the dogs around [Jefferson County] don’t even have that!”

“I don’t care what anyone says, if you can put the word ‘pet’ on the side of a deer…(it’s) your pet,” a commenter argued.

Their intentions may have been pure, but whoever is responsible has done this deer no favors, Missouri Department of Conservation Captain Scott Corley told McClatchy News in a phone interview.

“Somebody most likely took that deer out of the wild as a fawn and tried to keep it as a pet and put a collar on it,” Corley said, adding that it has “definitely lost its fear of humans.”

A conservation agent responded to the area on Sept. 27 after receiving a call from a concerned landowner, Corley said. The deer was gone by the time the agent arrived and its whereabouts are unknown.

“We’re concerned with the health of the deer,” Corley said. “And nowadays since we have issues with chronic wasting disease and other disease issues, [interaction] is not safe for humans and it’s not in the best interest of the animal’s welfare.”

The deer’s age is unclear, but it appears to be a young buck about 2 years old, give or take a few months, Corley said.

“Obviously they thought they were keeping it safe. Maybe going into hunting season they thought painting ‘pet’ on it, somebody won’t shoot it if it comes by,” he said. “That’s just not a good idea by any means.”

Deer hunting season coincides with mating season, when male deer are at their most dangerous, Corley said. The deer may have been friendly in dealing with people before, but a buck in mating mode is aggressive. Aggression and a lack of fear toward humans is a bad combination.

“When they took him out of the wild his first year … he didn’t have all those hormones running through him,” he said. “Now he can be aggressive and it can cause problems.”

If the department captures the deer, agents could remove its collar then try to ‘harass’ it to move it back into the wild. Ultimately, it might be best to euthanize the deer.

“We’re going to protect the people and if this deer is aggressive toward people there’s a possibility that would be an option,” he said. “The last thing we want to happen is for somebody to get gored with an antler.”

That wouldn’t be much of a risk if the deer had been left alone in the first place.

“It ends in a bad situation for the deer by taking them out of the wild. They have a lot better chance if you leave them where they’re at and don’t touch them,” he said.

This story was originally published October 9, 2023 at 1:16 PM with the headline "Deer wearing collar and marked ‘pet’ raises eyebrows in Missouri. ‘Unbelievable!!’."