For the eighth time in a short time, a dead roebuck has been found in the Loonse en Drunense Duinen. The animal also died during an attack by a dog, concludes forester Jan Meesters. But the animal was also beheaded, after which the head was taken.
“The head of this roebuck has been cut off by a ‘trophy collector’. Don’t get crazier,” the ranger reported on Twitter. “Nice, a buck’s head on your bedside table. Dogs on a lead, people!”
The discovery was made in the nature reserve south of café Roestelberg in Kaatsheuvel.
new antlers
“I’ve never seen anything like it,” replied a startled Meesters. “So the animal was first attacked by a dog. This roebuck just got new antlers, with two new rods on its head. That is probably the reason for someone to do this bizarre act.”
In the past two weeks, forest rangers from Natuurmonumenten in the Loonse en Drunense Duinen received seven reports about deer that had been bitten by stray dogs. The deer were seriously injured. Of the seven injured roe deer, five had to be put out of their misery.
‘Shocking experience’
Forest ranger Luc Roosen is increasingly receiving reports from visitors who see that a stray dog has caught a deer. “For hikers, that is often a shocking experience.” According to Natuurmonumenten, it happens much more often that a stray dog catches a deer than the seven times that it has now been reported.
The time for warning is now over, according to Meesters. “We will fine immediately. Someone who does not have his or her dog on a leash will receive a fine of about 110 euros.”
ALSO READ:
Many deer bitten by stray dogs: ‘They die slowly’