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Deer Attack Three at Ill. University
Comcast News - Associated Press ^ | 25 May 2006 | JIM SUHR, Associated Press Writer

Posted on 05/25/2006 10:01:47 AM PDT by GreenEggsNHam

Deer Attack Three at Ill. University By JIM SUHR, Associated Press Writer 5 hours ago

CARBONDALE, Ill. - A year after the normally docile creatures attacked seven people on a university campus here, the deer have turned bullish again.

Three people were attacked by deer within minutes of each other Tuesday on a footpath at Southern Illinois University, police said Wednesday. One doe probably was responsible for all three attacks, said Todd Sigler, the school's public safety chief.

One worker needed stitches for a gash on his forehead, another suffered cuts, bruises and a sprained wrist, and a student was left with a scratched jaw. Two of the victims sought medical treatment.

This week's incidents came earlier in fawning season than last year's attacks, which officials attributed to a combination of protective motherly instinct, squeezed habitat and, in some cases, people trying to approach fawns. There was no indication that anyone hurt Tuesday had provoked the deer, Sigler said.

"It's bothersome," Sigler said. "We certainly appreciate the deer, and we don't want to get rid of them. At the same time, we don't want people getting injured. It's a difficult situation."

SIU officials last week launched a public-awareness campaign to implore anyone on the 20,000-student campus to watch out for deer, to not approach the animals and, if a wild-eyed deer starts bounding their way, run.

"The options explained to us last year _ relocating the deer, tranquilizing them, thinning them out (through controlled hunts) _ all come with a downside," Sigler said. "We're going to try this education approach first and see what happens."

The path where Tuesday's attacks occurred has been closed off; handwritten signs were posted reading "Caution: Deer attacks."

The path encircles a lake and is less than a mile from the thickly forested campus woods and paved trails where deer confronted many last June.

More than one deer was believed to be responsible for the 2005 run-ins, in which four people suffered mostly minor injuries and others were threatened.

Walking through the Thompson Woods on Wednesday, Jane Swanson talked of how people joked about the deer last summer, saying they were more worried about wildlife than muggers.

But the chair of the school's psychology department says it's no longer a laughing matter.

"It makes sense that these poor deer are trying to protect their newborns, but we've got to figure out something other then just avoiding the deer," she said.



TOPICS: Miscellaneous; US: Illinois
KEYWORDS: attach; deer; illinois; maul; siu; venison
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If memory serves me correctly, this area is directly across from the law school. There has to be a good joke in here somewhere!
1 posted on 05/25/2006 10:01:51 AM PDT by GreenEggsNHam
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To: GreenEggsNHam

There would be no problem if these people would just abandon their irrational hatred of venison.


2 posted on 05/25/2006 10:03:26 AM PDT by wideawake
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To: GreenEggsNHam

That's why ya gotta kill 'em and eat 'em. They're dangerous. (and delicious!)


3 posted on 05/25/2006 10:05:20 AM PDT by OB1kNOb (This is no time for bleeding hearts, pacifists, and appeasers to prevail in free world opinion.)
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To: GreenEggsNHam

Also near the old frat houses, yes? LOL! That's a nice 2.2 mile jog around that lake.


4 posted on 05/25/2006 10:05:23 AM PDT by wizardoz
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To: GreenEggsNHam
But the chair of the school's psychology department says it's no longer a laughing matter.
"It makes sense that these poor deer are trying to protect their newborns, but we've got to figure out something other then just avoiding the deer," she said.

When the psych dept. chair opines on the mental state of deer, it IS still a laughing matter.

5 posted on 05/25/2006 10:07:28 AM PDT by martin_fierro (< |:)~)
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To: wizardoz

Cannot recall. I went to law school there 10 years ago (eep!).... I thought the old frat houses were near the main campus.


6 posted on 05/25/2006 10:07:33 AM PDT by GreenEggsNHam (Hey... what if the hokey pokey really IS what it's all about?)
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To: GreenEggsNHam

oh dear...


7 posted on 05/25/2006 10:08:33 AM PDT by goalinestan (Build it...and they won't come (as easily))
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To: GreenEggsNHam

We should really work harder to understand the fundamental reasons for deer anger.


8 posted on 05/25/2006 10:10:48 AM PDT by Hegemony Cricket (Seems to me you've lived your life like a Camel in the wind - blowing smoke from both ends)
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To: GreenEggsNHam

Here is some trivia.
Deer hate humans, killing more Americans than any other animal. The most common method of attack is to leap through the windshield of an automobile to get at the passengers. When I first started looking at this, I was disturbed to find the deer, in an effort to avoid publicity don't concentrate their attacks in any one area but attack seemingly randomly around the nation.
After putting together most of my research, I saw a pattern that made my blood run cold. In almost every attack I could document, the deer had chosen an area where law enforcement was scattered and incapable of an effective, rapid response. Not one of the attacks in my study took place , where a SWAT team or other large police force could be called upon, and expected to arrive in a timely manner.


9 posted on 05/25/2006 10:11:02 AM PDT by ansel12
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To: OB1kNOb
They're dangerous. (and delicious!)

In Florida we used to make venison sausage. As I remember it was a mix of pork, spices, venison, and maple sugar. We would fry up a batch along with eggs, grits and camp coffee.

10 posted on 05/25/2006 10:11:16 AM PDT by Ben Mugged (If you can read this, thank a teacher. If you are reading it in English, thank a soldier.)
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To: ansel12

hahahahaha! You might be on to something here!


11 posted on 05/25/2006 10:12:17 AM PDT by GreenEggsNHam (Hey... what if the hokey pokey really IS what it's all about?)
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To: GreenEggsNHam

This is the result of all the pseudo enviros who think killing excess deer is wrong.


12 posted on 05/25/2006 10:12:23 AM PDT by David Allen (the presumption of innocence - what a concept!)
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To: Ben Mugged
"In Florida we used to make venison sausage. As I remember it was a mix of pork, spices, venison, and maple sugar. We would fry up a batch along with eggs, grits and camp coffee."

Mmmmm. Man, that sounds yummy.

13 posted on 05/25/2006 10:17:00 AM PDT by paulcissa (Only YOU can prevent liberalism.)
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To: GreenEggsNHam
Re Frat Boys attacked by deer:

Deer, doing jobs GDI's* do not want to do
*Gosh Darn Independents

14 posted on 05/25/2006 10:18:08 AM PDT by llevrok (Stop the Latin Insurgents !!!)
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To: GreenEggsNHam

I blame this all on the Disney film "Bambi".

Anthropomorphizing animals makes people forget that they are still wild animals (see: Timothy Snackwell).


15 posted on 05/25/2006 10:22:16 AM PDT by Disambiguator (Unfettered gun ownership is the highest expression of civil rights.)
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To: GreenEggsNHam

Damn hooved rats are a major pest here in Illinois. With the animal rights whackos getting hunting restricted or stopped in some areas and the idiot city folk moving out into their Mchouses in the middle of former cornfields, the deer are really thick. I plan on dusting off my gun and getting one or two of the 20 or so that are now hanging out on my property this upcoming season.

I used to work at the Dresden nuke plant where the deer are especially thick. A few years ago, ComEd planned a limited bow hunt to thin the herd. When PETA got wind of it, 4 or 5 chained themselves to the door of the CEO's office and that ball-less wonder canceled the hunt. The next day a chemistry tech going off night shift was killed by one going through his windshield.


16 posted on 05/25/2006 10:26:04 AM PDT by nuke rocketeer
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To: Hegemony Cricket

"One doe was responsible for all three attacks."

Doe, a deer, a female deer? It's an enigma wrapped in a mystery.


17 posted on 05/25/2006 10:26:31 AM PDT by tumblindice
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To: GreenEggsNHam
This week marks the beginning of the birthing season for whitetail does that were bred in November. They're out looking for someplace to drop their fawns. This might be a problem for urban deer.

I've never heard of does attacking people, though.

18 posted on 05/25/2006 10:26:49 AM PDT by Kenton
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To: GreenEggsNHam

Question: What animal kills the most humans in the USA?

a. Alligators
b. Sharks
C. Deer
d. Bear
e. Snakes


19 posted on 05/25/2006 10:28:01 AM PDT by nikos1121
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To: martin_fierro

If the deer would confine their attacks to the faculty, I'd consider contributing to their legal defense fund.


20 posted on 05/25/2006 10:29:51 AM PDT by Heatseeker
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