AN ONLINE petition to save ‘Oki’ the deer from being shot has gone viral with nearly 150,000 people urging Wokingham Town Council (WTC) not to shoot her and the campaign reaching the national newspapers.
The female roe deer is thought to have become separated from her herd and, since May, has been living in land next to the allotment in Ormonde Road and has been eating crops grown by allotment holders.
An online petition has seen a surge of support – when The Wokingham Paper went to press on Thursday night, more than 120,000 had signed. Now, thanks to ongoing worldwide attention including a piece in today’s Mail on Sunday newspaper, that petition has seen 147,796 people sign. It will almost certainly go past 150,000 signatures as today goes on.
The Mail on Sunday’s article also contains the first photograph of the elusive Oki – most allotment holders haven’t even seen the deer and our photographers, who visited during the quiet times of dusk and dawn, also failed to capture the shy creature.
Shooting the animal is one of three options that town councillors will consider at a meeting next month. The others are to leave the deer in situ with higher fences installed or to capture and relocate it.
All options carry a risk – if the deer is captured it will be tranquilised using a drug that can cause heart attacks in humans. While waiting for the drug to take effect, the deer will still be running around and it is possible that the needle could fall out and contaminate the nearby ground.
Oki, as the deer has been affectionately named by users of social media, has caused significant damage to the plots, munching her way through the growing produce. Some allotmenteers are not happy and have asked Wokingham Town Council (WTC) to find a solution.
Kate Jakubiszyn, who set up the petition, said: “I set it up as I’m really sickened by all of the cruelty that is inflicted upon animals all over the world. Why is it that a council can’t find other ways of dealing with this poor deer? I intend to serve it to Wokingham Council and see what they have to say about it.”
Councillor Mark Ashwell, chair of Wokingham Town Council Amenities Committee, said: “The deer has been living on the allotments since late May. She has been chased off on a number of occasions and has returned.
“She came up the railway line and got estranged from her herd. She has now found an oasis and is nicely settled in.”
The council is taking advice on how to deal with the problem from several organisations including Beale Park, Marwell Zoo and the British Deer Society.
“The advice we are getting varies,” Mr Ashwell continued.
“We recognise we want a successful outcome, we really want the deer to leave and not return.”
Members of the public have voiced their outrage at the plans, with thousands signing an online petition calling on the council to reconsider.
Allotmenteer Tanya Forgan, from Inspire Change Wokingham, said she was ‘astounded’ by the idea of shooting a deer simply because it was eating crops.
She said: “I have an allotment there so I am fully aware of what has been going on but really, to even think about shooting a deer because it is eating some fruit and veg is ridiculous.”
A decision on what to do about the deer will then be taken when the council’s amenities committee meets on Tuesday, September 1.
At the time of going to press the ‘Save Oki the lonely deer from being shot!’ petition had been signed 126,201 times.
To add your name visit bit.ly/1TSQSvp
