A Petoskey deer has an arrow stuck in its shoulder. This resident wants to help

PETOSKEY — Every day, Cherie Dominic walks Petoskey’s Bear River Trail and sees the same few deer.

There’s a doe and two fawn that travel together, and a buck is often found nearby, she said.

She left the area for a few days last weekend, and when she returned to her normal path Wednesday, Aug. 16, she found the doe with an arrow from a crossbow stuck in its shoulder.

“I was so shocked by it,” Dominic said. "It was very upsetting to see that.”

Concerned, she called the city of Petoskey, who directed her to 911. During that first Wednesday, she also called the Department of Natural Resources (DNR) to report the poaching. She also worked with the tribal DNR to try to get the doe help.

Her hopes are to connect with the DNR to tranquilize the deer so a veterinarian could remove the arrow from her shoulder. She does not want the deer euthanized, Dominic said.

“It doesn't appear to be a life-threatening situation, however, obviously, it's got to be painful,” Dominic said. "I refuse to believe that nobody will help her.”

She said her own veterinarian agreed to help out so long as the state or DNR could tranquilize the deer.

Dominic said that while she didn’t know the exact date the deer was shot, other people on the trail thought she may have been hit with the arrow on the Monday Dominic left town, Aug. 14.

According to Scott Eggeman, the DNR’s field operations manager for the northeast section of the northern lower Michigan, there isn’t much the department can do if the injury isn’t life threatening.

He also said that right now, the DNR does not currently have any availability to use immobilization drugs because the department’s veterinarian, a wildlife biologist, left and the role currently remains vacant. He said the department is in the process of rehiring, but the vacancy has been left open for a while now.

Eggeman said he was not specifically aware of the situation with the Bear River Trail deer, but in a typical situation similar to this one, the DNR would leave the deer alone because chemically immobilizing the deer can put it in danger, as well as other people if the deer is still able to move and run, especially near a public trail.

When Dominic got ahold of the DNR, she said she was told that they would let nature take its course.

“This is not nature. Someone shooting a doe that has babies with a crossbow is not nature taking its course,” she said. "It's just making me really frustrated.”

Dominic said she has heard people say they’re afraid people are firing weapons in the park and along the trails. She said the doe is tame and gets close to people, so knowing someone has a weapon in the public area is worrisome.

Subscribe: Check out our latest offers

Dominic stressed that she wants help for the deer, but she does not want to see the deer put down or removed from her habitat. She just wants the arrow removed on site.

Since finding the doe last week, Dominic began doing research to see if other communities have had similar situations happen, and she said those animals did receive help.

In the last week or so, Dominic said she has seen the arrow get more embedded in the deer's shoulder.

“It's just painful to see her out there — with her babies — with an arrow stuck in her shoulder, limping,” Dominic said.

With information about the poaching incident, report to the DNR's Report All Poaching hotline at 800-292-7900.

— Contact reporter Karly Graham at kgraham@petoskeynews.com. Follow her on Twitter at @KarlyGrahamJRN.

This article originally appeared on The Petoskey News-Review: Petoskey resident trying to find help for injured deer