The stray deer spotted running through inner-city burb Fitzroy, has sadly been euthanised by vets.
Earlier today, it was reported that a deer had gone for a cheeky stroll down Fitzroy’s Johnston street, near Biba Academy of Hairdressing. Multiple witnesses spotted the deer frolicking around, and I’m kicking myself I didn’t spot it on my walk this morning.
Deer on the loose if Fitzroy @Channel9 pic.twitter.com/A4MBwAXdOZ
— Charlie Cross (@charliecross24) June 5, 2021
Christmas has come early to Fitzroy and Collingwood this morning with moose romping down Johnston St (from FB) pic.twitter.com/IN1p7cAWmO
— Sarah Danckert (@sdanck) June 5, 2021
Victoria Police referred all calls about the cheeky deer to Wildlife Victoria, who consulted Vets for Compassion about what should be done with the animal.
Wildlife Victoria decided the most most humane thing to do would be to euthanise the deer, according to expert Barry Howlett (a fitting name for an animal expert if you ask me).
“It’d be very difficult to effectively sedate it and then you’d have the problem that it’s actually illegal to release these animals in the wild anyway,” Howlett said.
Howlett also told the ABC that the stray animal would’ve been “very young and confused.” He said it’s lucky it wasn’t a regular Saturday morning, otherwise it would’ve been “a far more challenging situation.”
Earlier today, PEDESTRIAN.TV spoke to Rosie Burke, one of the witnesses who spotted the cheeky bugger.
“We had just finished a run actually and we were just stretching on the side of Johnston St and we just looked in the direction of Smith St and this huge deer—it had full-on antlers—was running so fast down Johnston St,” Burke said.
“Then it kinda just ran in front of a car then ran down a side street. It was obviously very terrified and it was really sad to see but we were like, ‘imagine if this was Christmas time. One of Santa’s reindeers has gone on the run!’”
Burke reported the runaway deer in Facebook group Fitzroy Neighbourhood Network, where she learned that deer had been on the run for 24 hours.
Barry Howlett believes the deer likely travelled from the peri-urban fringe along the Yarra River in search of a parter. He said it was also spotted at the Kew Golf Club.
RIP Fitzroy friend.
