On Thursday July 26th, Saddle River passed a deer culling ordinance.
During hunting season, September to February, licensed hunters will be able to ‘cull’ deer as well as coyote.
Councilman Ron Gray was the only individual to vote no after a 3 1/2 hours of discussion and 26 Saddle River residents, as well as outsiders, arriving to protest the vote.
What Does This Ordinance Entail on Paper?
- Licensed hunters will be able to hunt deer and coyote to cull the population
- They can only hunt during dawn and dusk during hunting season.
- Residents can say no to individual pursuing a deer onto their property
- Residents must be informed before any hunting takes place
- Weapons must be discharged in a downward direction.
What Does This Ordinance REALLY entail?
- Due to this ordinance, excessive hunting may occur and wipe out the local deer population entirely.
- They will be hunting during low light times of the day, disrupting morning schedules and residents evenings.
- An individual can say no to having hunters on property, but what happens if an injured deer lands on their lands?
- Residents will be informed, but will not be able to say no to hunting occurring in their area.
- Firing in a downward direction is great in theory – sit in a tree and shoot down. But if the deer runs? Do they let an injured animal run or ‘humanly’ kill it, potentially not shooting in a downward direction and hitting another individual.
What Don’t We Know?
- What weapon is going to be decided on? Guns are more humane as they are more accurate, but they are inherently loud. Compound crossbows are much quieter, but they have the potential to be less accurate.
- What happens to the dead deer? Do the hunters take the animal to do with as they please? Does the local town have to remove the carcass?
- September to February is a long hunting season, and dawn or dusk means there are two opportunities a day. Will they be able to hunt any day of the week during the entire season?
- Individuals, or groups, will be able to carry out hunting during the prescribed times. Will just anyone with a license be able to hunt or will they need to be vetted by the local authorities?
- Keep in mind, one must be a minimum age of 10 years old, and complete a hunting course, to get a license. Will children be allowed to hunt? (Click here to see information on getting a license.)
- What happens if a deer crosses over from Saddle River into a surrounding area? Will they need to let a potentially injured deer go? (ASPCA will not be supporting that).
If you don’t agree with this, as many of the Saddle River, and surrounding town, residents do not, please check out the League of Humane Voters of New Jersey web-page for information on what you can potentially do.
Check out the Animal Protection League of New Jersey.
Too many deer means potential heightened car accidents. Learn how to avoid vehicle accidents with deer here.
Check out Keep Saddle River Safe to find out further information.
Join the Facebook group Saddle River Against Bow Hunt to get further updates.
Citizens4usr.com will keep the town informed with town updates as well as information as it arises.
As a resident of Saddle River, I am appalled and sickened that this has passed. I was out of town and not at the 2 past meetings, but saw clips from them. I cannot believe such ignorance!
Last year Saddle River killed at least 6 healthy coyotes. The very coyotes that would have naturally aided in culling the deer herd. It is a known fact that the incidence of coyotes ever attacking people is near 0′ and where they become a nuisance the correct and humane method of hazing is successful. Saddle river, however, panicked and killed young animals that would have naturally dispersed from their pack in the near future. So the deer population in town continues to rise, as it does in most areas of NJ that lack predators.
Deer/automobile collisions often comes up on the side of those in favor of a deer cull. I fear more that once the deer are hunted and become skittish, they are more likely to run into traffic. Never mind injured deer wandering into roadways.
One of my brothers is a hunter in south Jersey. He and his friends are in awe of the beautiful bucks we have in town, and have jokingly asked for my address. Will the hunters who are lined up to kill in our town be regulated in what animals they can target? I have seen so many hunters go after the largest, healthiest bucks for trophy status, throwing off the balance of a herd and leaving young breeding females behind.
One of the joys of living in Saddle River has been the wildlife in my own backyard. I saw coyotes (before the “panic” cull), and while I was thrilled, I took reasonable precautions so that I can coexist with these magnificent creatures. I bought a small air horn, and keep my little dog leashed at all times. Very small concessions, in my opinion, to be able to live near such wonderful animals.
Indeed, one of the joys of our town is the beautiful wildlife, with the deer being one of my favorites. I have seen many generations born on my property, and have actually come to recognize individual deer from year to year. The thought of them being killed in my neighborhood saddens me to my core. I say, if you can’t handle living near wildlife and cannot come up with humane solutions , MOVE TO HOBOKEN!!!
Thank you for your comment. This is proving to be quite a contentious issue with people on both sides with strong feelings. Many of us love the wildlife but it seems that many also don’t. So the deer lose. Hopefully, this isn’t a done deal and as a resident of Saddle River if you have any further information you can share please do let us know so that we can keep the information updated.
There are good reasons for not wanting deer hunted in residential neighborhoods at times of day when visibility is especially low. citizens4usr brought up other good points in this blog post too.
However, to not kill deer because they’re beautiful? That’s just foolhardy. They are a pest.
Thank you for your comment. This is proving to be a very emotive issues and there are many things to consider. Hopefully with resident input and some open discussions a conclusion that is satisfactory to all will be reached.