A Townsite woman, Tage Young, is warning pet owners about taking their animals out at night after her one-year old Airedale Terrier was killed by a deer early Monday morning.
"It was my pup," Young said. "She has colitis and has to go out on a regular basis. I've been working evenings so she is on a schedule to go out quite late. At about 1:30, she whined to go out.
"I got the flashlight and followed her out."
Young says that she always takes her flashlight out to shine the way to the dog pen where her dog was trained to go. Her pup was not on a leash but was very well trained to come when called and go only the short distance to the pen. Unfortunately, Young didn't get an opportunity to call out to her terrier.
"She went right up the four stairs, her two front paws hit the grass and a buck came out of nowhere and gutted her like a fish," said an emotional Young.
She took the Airedale to the vet but she died on the way.
"She didn't charge the deer or bark at it. She just took a step forward to go to the dog pen."
Young says she worries about what would have happened if her mother, who is elderly with limited vision, had taken the dog out.
"I guess I should have had my girl on a leash to go that short distance, but she was well trained to come when called and we were going straight to the dog pen. I had a flash light. My dogs are never outside loose. I am always with them when they go out to the pen. They are always leashed when I walk them until I get onto the Lois Creek Trails.
"I thought she would be safe if I was with her. I'm just concerned that a person might go outside, maybe an elderly person, and get jumped without even seeing the deer. These animals are in rut and fully aggressive, protecting their territory. I was eight feet from the dog, six feet from the deer, but I didn't see it in time."
Ironically, Young says that up to now she has been very opposed to the deer cull, and still doesn't think most deer are a danger, but she does worry about bucks in the rut.
"I was totally against the cull. Now I don't know how I feel about it."