STOP THE 15 YEARS OF KILLING DEER IN PHILADELPHIA'S FAIRMOUNT PARK

Petitioning -Cindy Bass

District 8-Council Member

City Hall, Room 594

Philadelphia, PA. 19107

PAD urges Cindy Bass,  Philadelphia councilwoman, to call for City Council Hearings on the annual deer kill that has been going on since March, 1999. We advocate a CEASE FIRE in our city parks, including the Wissahickon, Pennypack, West Park and Cobbs Creek Parks. 2,736 deer have been killed  after fifteen years, when Park and Recreation Commissioners originally  promised only a one time kill. No data on the effectiveness of the annual kills as been reviewed by the city of Philadelphia or the Fairmount Parks Commission.  Killing does not curb the deer population since deer numbers will quickly pop up again as new deer move into the area and more fawns are born. This phenomenon is called “compensatory reproduction”.

 No long term plan has been presented to the public to develop more effective and less inhumane strategies for living with the deer. Philadelphia needs to stop this cycle of violence in our neighborhood parks where families and children first experience the wonder of nature.

Philadelphia Advocates for the Deer (PAD) began its work in the spring of 2010 as a cooperative venture of the residents who live in the neighborhoods of Mt. Airy, Germantown and Chestnut Hill with support from CARE, a Chester County advocacy group for animals. PAD' S mission has at its core a respect for Fairmount Park's indigenous animals, preserving the ecological health of the Park and insuring that the wild tailed deer have the freedom to live free on their own terms. PAD has held annual protests, addressed the Fairmount Park Commission, held educational forums to educate neighbors how to live peacefully with the deer; written articles in local papers and national magazines on how to manage Lyme disease, how to grow deer resistant gardens, and ways to deter collisions with automobiles and talked to hundreds of neighbors who are shocked and saddened by the killings.

Please help stop the violence in our parks and the cruel, annual killing of the deer. PAD and CARE endorses a cease fire in our parks. Killing is not ethical and as a green city, Philadelphia, needs to educate its citizens on humane ways to live with the deer.

1. Killing the deer for 16 years is not working. Compensatory reproduction causes more births of fawns.

2. Demand a CEASE FIRE in the park system. Gun free parks should be safe for all Philadelphians including the deer.

3. Money spent on the annual killings could be better used on educational initiatives.

4. Fairmount Park Commission needs to be transparent and hold open forums with community members to present facts about how much money is spent and what practices are being used in the parks for the yearly deer slaughters.

5. The safety of neighborhoods is paramount with rifles in areas so close to human dwellings.