Residents of Kenora, Canada, were devastated to see a well-known returning deer with an arrow pierced in his head.
Lee-Anne Carver, from Ontario, has taken it upon herself to name a few of the friendly deer who do frequent visits in neighborhoods in Kenora, one of which is Carrot.
Carver first saw Carrot three years ago, when he was being cared for by a buck she dubbed Potato.
Carrot the deer always comes back to visit, however, this year Carver’s husband went home crying after seeing the deer with an arrow through his head.
The poor deer had clearly fallen victim to a hunter, thankfully, Carrot managed to survive.
The arrow was pierced between his antlers and went just behind the side of his head, leading Carver to believe it came from above from someone on a window or a deck in a residential area.
Carver remembered the first time she saw Potato with Carrot.
“And he had this little fawn with him, this orphaned fawn, which bucks will often take orphaned fawns under their wing, and it was Carrot, or who would become Carrot,” Carver said,
“He was exceptional, and he continues to come back. Carrot’s personality is so unique, he’s impossible to misidentify,” Carved told CBC.
The caring Kenora local, who is a wildlife photographer, said she could barely understand her husband when he went home to tell her what happened to the poor deer. So she went out to see Carrot and admitted she was ‘completely disturbed’ when she saw him.
“My understanding from the hunters who have been writing me, it’s a carbon arrow, a lethal arrow for hunting. It would come out of a crossbow,” Carver said.
At first, the caring local expressed belief that the arrow may be saving Carrot’s life, and that removing it may cause severe bleeding or nerve damage, however, she later shared updates to say the arrow had been removed.
Employees from the Ministry of Natural Resources and Forestry removed the bolt and injected Carrot with antibiotics, and a few hours later, the deer was back on his feet although stressed and disorientated from the drugs he had been given.
“He licked my familiar hands and I felt his remembrance race through my glad, glad heart.point 224 |
I am almost certain I drove the team crazy talking to Carrot, but I was trying to give him something to hold onto that he trusted; something to call him back home.point 132 | I would say his name and he would stop walking and turn his eyes to me,” Carver explained.point 207 |
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Bylaws in the City of Kenora and the City of Thunder Bay mean it is legal to discharge a crossbow within urban areas of the city, but Carver described Carrot’s shooting as an ‘act of animal cruelty’.
Ever since sharing Carrot’s story online, Carver has received outpouring support from people across the globe. She mentioned his situation has ‘brought cultures together’, resulting in a ‘unified voice’ of ‘compassion and care’.
Carver plans to continue monitoring Carrot as he recovers.