Change deer hunt laws: N.S. horse owners
Last Updated: Saturday, November 7, 2009 | 6:20 PM AT
CBC News
Some horse owners in Nova Scotia are calling for changes to deer hunting laws after two horse shooting incidents this week.
They say they're worried about the safety of their animals and themselves.
Police are investigating after two horses were shot, one of them fatally, at a farm in South Maitland on Thursday night.
A 2½-year-old horse named Bailey died from the bullet in her upper body. The other, named Genes, is recovering after a bullet seared through the back of her neck.
Carla Mullins discovered her horses Friday morning. She is angry and grief-striken at the loss and believes careless hunters are to blame.
"Why? How could you be so stupid? She's not even small like a deer. Like ... why? It makes no sense to me," she said Saturday after burying Bailey.
Officers found shell casings near the pasture where the horses were grazing and fresh ATV tracks nearby, said RCMP Sgt. Chris Bewsher. It appears the horses were shot with a high-calibre weapon, he said.
Shot missed horses
Earlier this week, a hunter fired a shot that narrowly missed Pat Cummings's horses at her horse arena in Lunenburg County.
Cummings called the police, but the man with the gun got away.
"They intercepted as many people as they could who were hunting in the area behind our farm," she said. "And basically they told us, 'Don't go near the woods, even with orange clothing on,' because there were so many hunters right behind our farm right now."
Cummings said deer hunters flock to her neighbour's property and often end up near her backyard before sunrise and after dark. She worries that it's only a matter of time before one of her horses or loved ones gets shot.
Cummings thinks the province should change the rules so hunters can only take aim in remote areas.
"I'm very upset because I have children, teenagers, who come here to ride and it costs me hundreds of dollars to [keep my horses in and feed them] hay, when they could be [out] on the grass. And I have done that all along. However, the safety factor now is getting really crazy," she said.
"We were told by the authorities that a gun that size, at that range, would go right through this riding arena, so I have no place to put my horses and my children and my grandchildren where it's safe right now."
She used to have No Hunting signs on her property, but someone shot them up. "So we always keep our horses in as much as we can this time of year."
Nova Scotia's deer hunting season lasts until the first week of December.
