NEAR ENDERBY – Conservation officers had to kill almost all the fallow deer they were trying to capture Thursday at a farm near Enderby.
Just two of the 29 deer in the herd were live-captured.
The farm owner admits his game farm licence was rescinded in 2015 but says he has tried to work with authorities to get it back.
He says he had no idea officials were coming onto his property to remove the animals and feels it’s a heavy handed response.
In an email response to Global News the province said, “The Ministry of Agriculture has worked with the operators over the last 10 years, informing them on multiple occasions, of what actions they would need to complete to maintain their license, and worked with members of the community that had concerns about the impact of fallow deer at large on their property and in their community.”
The owner acknowledges he doesn’t comply with all the terms of the Game Farm Act but says he wants to work with officials to get back to good standing.
The two surviving deer are to go to a farm in the Vanderhoof area.
-With files from Megan Turcato-