Worthington\u2019s deer removal program officially begins Thursday, with trained federal wildlife professionals conducting targeted removals.<\/p>\n
WORTHINGTON, Ohio \u2014 A city-approved deer removal program officially takes effect on New Year’s Day in Worthington, allowing federal wildlife professionals to conduct targeted removals under a new permit \u2014 a move that has raised safety concerns among some residents.<\/p>\n
Under the program, Worthington will work with trained experts from the U.S. Department of Agriculture\u2019s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service Wildlife Services. City officials say the permit authorizes removal activities beginning Thursday, but specific operation dates are not being released to maintain security and operational effectiveness.<\/p>\n
\u201cSomething has to be done,\u201d said Jane Moore, who has lived in Worthington for more than 30 years. \u201cI\u2019m not too worried about the deer, but a lot of people are.\u201d<\/p>\n
Moore said she has seen the deer population worsen in recent years.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s been worse the last couple of years than I\u2019ve ever experienced before,\u201d Moore said. \u201cThey eat all the garden plants, everyone has had to change their landscaping, so it\u2019s kind of a nuisance.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cPeople don\u2019t see them at night and stuff and run into them,\u201d she added. “There normally are five or six or seven prowling up and down the street here.”<\/p>\n
Those concerns led Worthington City Council to unanimously approve hiring federal wildlife professionals to carry out the removals last year, following recommendations from a deer task force that was formed in 2023 to study the issue and propose possible solutions.<\/p>\n
\u201cThis would be both to directly reduce the numbers of deer in the city, but also to alter the behavior of deer, both in reintroducing a healthy fear of humans within the city,\u201d said task force member and Worthington resident Christopher Torna at a council meeting last year.\u00a0<\/p>\n
According to the city, the deer population control permit, issued by the Ohio Department of Natural Resources Division of Wildlife, runs through the end of February and could be extended into March if needed.<\/p>\n
The city said it will not identify exact dates the program will be conducted, citing security and operational effectiveness, but that operations will take place after dark, on select weeknights, when parks are closed, public activity is minimal, and only on pre-approved properties. The sharpshooters will use suppressed firearms, frangible ammunition, and elevated platforms, with police oversight and spotters to ensure safety.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cSafety is our top priority,\u201d a spokesperson for the city said in a statement. \u201cThis program is based on proven best practices used successfully in communities across Ohio and the country. We are working directly with federal and state wildlife professionals who have extensive experience managing similar programs with strong safety records.\u201d<\/p>\n
One resident has filed a lawsuit challenging the program.<\/p>\n
Kevin Callinan challenged the city this week after learning deer removal could take place at a property adjacent to his home. A Franklin County judge has granted a temporary restraining order preventing the operation from being conducted within 1,000 feet of his house. The next hearing is scheduled for Wednesday.<\/p>\n
The city said it is working with its legal team to prepare a legal response and determine its next steps.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Worthington officials also point to community feedback in support of the program. The city said two community surveys drew responses from thousands of residents, with\u00a073% supporting the use of firearms by trained experts as a deer management tool.<\/p>\n
Still, some neighbors say they understand why Callinan is concerned.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019d probably be a little nervous too if that was going to happen on our property, so I can see where he\u2019s coming from, absolutely,\u201d said Hattie Schuenke.<\/p>\n
Schuenke, a mother of three, said the idea of sharpshooters operating near homes makes her uneasy.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt makes me a little hesitant to think that there\u2019s going to be, you know, people in backyards, or, you know, having guns and little kids around,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
At the same time, she acknowledged the challenge city leaders are facing.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere\u2019s definitely large groups of them that are walking around. It\u2019s a little intimidating,” she said. “I would hope that they\u2019ve looked at all avenues and this is the best solution they\u2019ve come up with.\u201d<\/p>\n
Moore said she expects the issue will persist, even with the new program in place.<\/p>\n
\u201cThey have to try to do something as many years as we\u2019ve had this issue,\u201d Moore said. \u201cI don\u2019t know that it will help, because they\u2019ll come back.\u201d<\/p>\n
City officials also say all processed venison from the operation will be donated to local food pantries.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Worthington\u2019s deer removal program officially begins Thursday, with trained federal wildlife professionals conducting targeted removals. WORTHINGTON, Ohio \u2014…\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":487890,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[27],"tags":[159,67,132,68,837],"class_list":{"0":"post-487889","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-wildlife","8":"tag-science","9":"tag-united-states","10":"tag-unitedstates","11":"tag-us","12":"tag-wildlife"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@us\/115827462846799501","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/487889","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=487889"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/487889\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/487890"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=487889"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=487889"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=487889"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}