FRIDAY, JANUARY 27, 2017
THE BAKER COUNTY PRESS — 7
Outdoor Rec / Local
Deer feeding
CONTINUED FROM
PAGE 1
Primus said that there
are more deer (mule deer)
down in the river corri-
dor than what is typically
seen, because of the winter
conditions, and much of
the time, they’re on the
south-facing slopes, north
of the highway. He said
that with the feeding, the
risk to both deer and driv-
ers increases. “It’s really
unsafe for vehicles. Bad
for the deer, bad for the
drivers,” Perrine said.
Primus said that, while
ODFW has seen fl akes and
remains of alfalfa along
the highway, and the deer
congregating to feed on it,
there’s been no success yet
in identifying who, exactly,
is feeding the deer, because
they haven’t seen indi-
viduals doing it, and they
haven’t received informa-
tion about who’s doing it.
“I think they’re probably
feeding daily,” Primus
said. Some hay is placed
along straight lengths of
the highway, some on
corners, some right along
the highway, and some a
short distance away from
it, he said.
Perrine provided a copy
of an informational sec-
tion on ODFW’s website,
www.dfw.state.or.us, titled
“Don’t Feed Deer And
Elk,” pointing out some is-
sues with feeding deer, elk,
and other wildlife:
“Artifi cial feeding con-
centrates wildlife, which
leads to the easier spread
of disease and parasites
and easier take by preda-
tors; Feeding deer and
elk attracts their natural
predators like cougars and
coyotes to areas of human
activity; Once wildlife as-
sociate people with giving
them food, they come to
expect it. Feeding will
invite more deer and elk to
your property and encour-
age them to stay; Artifi cial
feeding can cause deer and
elk to become habituated
to humans and aggressive
towards them; Concentrat-
ing deer and elk in human-
settled areas can lead to
an increase in vehicle
collisions and confl icts
between wildlife and pets;
Concentrating deer and elk
can hurt habitat by encour-
aging excessive grazing.”
Primus said that the
Oregon State Police (OSP)
is aware of the situation,
and personnel have moved
some of the feed, protein
and salt blocks away from
the highway, when possi-
ble. Primus said that OSP
personnel are attempting to
determine who’s feeding
the deer, so they could
be informed of the traffi c
hazards being created.
Speaking about the
effects biologically on
deer, Primus said, “If you
have a deer that’s in poor
body condition, and you
switch them over to alfalfa,
that’s highly nutritious,
the digestive enzymes in
their stomachs aren’t able
to cope with that, and that
high-protein forage content
will cause a deer to bloat,
and it will kill them.” Pri-
mus said that, for the most
part, the body condition
of most of the deer seems
to be good, without many
“skinny” deer observed.
“We came into winter
looking good; we had a
good fall green-up, deer
were healthy, things were
looking good,” Perrine
said.
Despite the appearance
of good body condition,
“Every year, ODFW also
sees seemingly healthy
deer and elk die because
they have been fed the
wrong food by well-
intentioned people. Their
diet requirements actually
change with the seasons
and are best met by native
forage. Deliberately feed-
ing deer or elk may inhibit
digestion and lead to death
by starvation or infec-
tion,” according to ODFW
information. Primus said
that, even with the surge
of green, natural forage in
spring, deer can get scours,
due to the higher water
content, and many can die,
after surviving the winter.
Primus also pointed out
the economical aspect of
feeding the deer (Primus
said that deer typically eat
about fi ve or six pounds of
feed per day, while an elk
eats about ten), because,
once there’s a commitment
to start, the number of deer
may be small, but that herd
could soon expand greatly,
resulting in a fi nancial
hardship, and an inabil-
ity to continue with the
endeavor. Once the deer
expect to be fed regularly
in a certain spot, he said,
Fire destroys
Huntington home
Todd Arriola / The Baker County Press.
Phillip Perrine of ODFW.
if that feeding stops due to
fi nancial woes, more deer
could die as a result. Both
Primus and Perrine said
that, whether the public
feeding is happening in
rural areas, or within Baker
City limits, for example,
the issues are basically the
same, with diet, disease,
predators, and traffi c.
Perrine said, “The
thing is, most of these
people who are feeding,
we understand, care about
wildlife, and, we do, too,
but, feeding doesn’t always
mean you’re helping
them...” Both understand
and appreciate that, with
the onset of winter, the
natural public instinct is to
worry about and to try to
feed wildlife, but, as Pri-
mus pointed out, “It really
doesn’t do the deer any
good, in the long run...One
thing I think folks should
strive for, rather than the
artifi cial feeding in the
winter time, is having a
good brush component,
and good habitat, that’s
still available, above snow
level for deer this time of
year. So, if we had better
brush, mahogany stands,
they’re going to stand up
above the snow, and they
aren’t going to have to dig
for those...If we had more
areas of higher quality for-
age component, snow and
winter conditions wouldn’t
really have an impact on
deer.”
Perrine echoed Primus’s
sentiments, stating that for-
age improvement projects
are preferred, “...instead of
spending more money on
a feeding program that we
discourage.” Primus said
that there are a number of
different funding programs
which can assist landown-
ers in completing improve-
ment projects, whether
through ODFW, or through
another agency, such as the
Natural Resources Conser-
vation Service (NRCS).
One example Primus
gave, from the ODFW
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side, is that the Keating
Wildlife Management
Unit (WMU) is a Mule
Deer Initiative (MDI) unit,
which means that “...the
Department has funding
to do whatever kind of
projects we want to do.”
Perrine added that dona-
tions can be made in a
number of ways to support
programs such as MDI.
ODFW established the
Elkhorn Wildlife Area
(EWA, one of numerous
feed stations), located
about 10 miles west of
North Powder, which
feeds roughly 800 deer and
1,400 elk during the win-
ter, with 10 feeding sites
located there, “...to keep
deer and elk from feed-
ing on private agricultural
lands when they migrate
down from snow-covered
higher elevations...” ac-
cording to ODFW. Perrine
said, “There’s a differ-
ence between the Elkhorn
Wildlife Area, and the
Keating stations that are
set up, and the rest of our
District. The EWA was put
into place to alleviate dam-
age, because of the lack
of winter range. There is
literally no winter range
for the deer and elk, on the
face of the Elkhorns...The
rest of the District, in the
places where people are
feeding, we don’t lack that
winter range...There’s a
big difference...That’s why
we feed over here (at the
EWA)...”
The EWA has a gate
system for feeding deer
and elk, Primus and Per-
rine said, which helps keep
them separated, and alfalfa
and alfalfa pellets are fed
there, “...early in the
season so deer and elk’s
digestive systems do not
have to quickly readjust
to new food types, and
continues every day, no
matter what, until forage
conditions improve. Feed-
ing areas are located away
from human-populated
areas to decrease confl icts.
ODFW also conducts
disease testing at some
feeding sites,” according to
ODFW information.
Primus and Perrine
said that they have some
improvement projects
in mind for this spring,
which are in the planning
stage, and they encourage
interested landowners to
develop some plans also,
and to contact ODFW for
assistance. “We encour-
age people to come up
with ideas in the Keat-
ing unit (part of the MDI
program),” said Perrine,
and Primus echoed that
sentiment. They said
ODFW is already planning
on completing riparian,
invasive grass species, and
aspen stand projects.
Primus said, “Whether
you’re for feeding, or
against feeding, at least
people are concerned
about the wildlife around
them, and they’re wanting
to take an active role in
seeing them do well in the
future.” Perrine said, “We
encourage people to care
about wildlife. We’re not
discouraging them from
that. We just want people
to know the facts, that
feeding isn’t always the
best route.”
Eileen Driver / The Baker County Press.
A home was destroyed in a blaze this Tuesday.
BY EILEEN DRIVER
Eileen@TheBakerCountyPress.com
The home of Tracy McQue, Huntington City Recorder
and Travis Young, former Mayor and current Deputy
Fire Chief of Huntington, was burned to the ground on
Tuesday, January 24.
The fi re that was reported about 11:00 a.m. burned up
the entire four-bedroom, 1,352 square-foot home built in
1890, located at 585 Oregon Trail Blvd. / Old Hwy. 30, in
a matter of two hours in a hot blaze, the cause of which is
as yet unknown.
Firefi ghters managed to contain the fi re to the residence,
thanks to the inmate work crew that unburied the fi re
hydrant from the snow just that morning, and were able
to keep it from spreading to the out-buildings or the sur-
rounding homes.
Tracy McQue heard about the fi re from a neighbor who
called her a City Hall to tell her there was smoke pour-
ing out of the back door of her house. She immediately
rushed home to see what was happening and try and save
her dog and two cats that were inside the home but it was
too late as the home was fully engulfed by then.
McQue stated, “ I am just glad that no one was home
when it happened. I had the neighbor’s little girl over this
morning and am so glad she wasn’t here when it started.”
Young reported, “ I got a call over my fi re radio at
work about a fi re at my address!” He then called McQue
to confi rm that it was correct and rushed home to see for
himself.
While most of their fi rearms and valuables are secured
in a large fi re proof safe a brand new rifl e just purchased
by Travis was sitting on the dining room table along with
its ammunition, which started going off in the fi re. Luck-
ily no one was injured by the small explosions or stray
bullets.
The couple is hoping that at least the safe held as oth-
erwise they are left with the clothes they are wearing and
the contents of their garage. Friends at the scene said they
are planning to open a “go fund me” account to help the
couple get back on their feet.
Huntington
declares disaster
BY EILEEN DRIVER
Eileen@TheBakerCountyPress.com
On January 19th the City Council of Huntington issued
a declaration of local disaster due to the massive snowfall
that has continually been bombarding the town. With the
town’s public works employees plowing the roads practi-
cally 24/7 in an effort to keep them safe for residence and
make them passable the worst possible thing to happen
did happen. The plow truck blew the transmission and the
streets of Huntington remained unplowed while yet an-
other winter storm passed over making the roads virtually
unusable for two days while they worked to fi x it. With
fi re hydrants buried in the snow and storm drains iced
closed, the City knew they needed help and had to act
fast to fi x this problem before it became even worse.
As reports of carports, sheds and porches collapsing
began to come in, the City along with the Chamber of
Commerce began rounding up volunteers to shovel snow
off roofs and sidewalks of elderly and disabled citizens
who could not do it for themselves. Welfare checks of
housebound residents were performed by Sandra Vaughn
of the Huntington Senior & Youth Organization, which
found everyone safe and sound to this point. Huntington
Food Bank volunteers Allan Driver and Betty Tamburello
dug a literal tunnel through the snow berm surrounding
Lion’s Park so that citizens who have been unable to get
to Ontario to grocery shop could get access to the Food
Bank for emergency supplies. Sean Mckay of Burnt Riv-
er Farms drove his tractor with snow plow attachment all
over the City plowing out the VFW Hall and anyone else
who needed help. All available volunteers with shovels in
hand did their best to clean roofs and carports.
According to Deputy City Recorder Shellie Nash,
“Citizens are stepping up and doing everything they can
to help neighbors, but it ( the storms) never seems end.”
Working with Jason Yencopal of Baker County Emer-
gency Management the City has secured a snow plow
from the Baker County Road Department to use during
this crisis to help with keeping the streets clean and an
inmate road crew from the department of corrections was
brought down to un-bury the fi re hydrants that are under
three feet of snow, as well as to unclog the storm drains
so when the snow does melt it has somewhere to go other
than the streets and basements of those who live in the
lowest elevations.
Citizens are hoping the three or four days of non-snowy
weather happening now will allow snow to melt and
make a dent in the snow and ice accumulating on roofs.