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Elk rescue: Good deed or bad decision?
Bureaucracy versus Bambi.
Mark Prado
That's how one San Anselmo resident is viewing his attempt to save a young tule elk from what he believed was certain death in the Point Reyes National Seashore. Now, Andrew Roettger is worried he might be fined or cited for his actions.
Wildlife officials say Roettger would have been wise to leave the young elk alone, noting that it is illegal to remove animals from the park.
"It's not as though I wanted to gut the thing and eat it," Roettger said. "I fed it Straus milk for God's sake. I was trying to be a good citizen."
In early June, Roettger was diving near Elephant Rock in West Marin. When he came out of the water he noticed what he thought was a sickly young deer. He went back into the water and again saw the animal on the way out.
"Its ribs were sticking out, it didn't open its eyes. It didn't look good at all," he said. "It looked like it had been abandoned."
He drove home with the thoughts of the animal weighing on his mind. He told his 14-year-old daughter, Robin, about the animal and they drove back out to West Marin to rescue it.
"It was still there, and I don't think it would have made it to the next morning," Roettger said. "We put it in the back of the Rover with a blanket and drove home. I didn't know it was an elk."
By the time they got home, it was too late to contact anyone who could help, so the animal was left in the vehicle overnight.
"I fed it Straus Farms half-and-half and kept an eye on it," Roettger said.
He then contacted WildCare, a San Rafael-based wildlife rehabilitation group, which took the animal and cared for it.
Karen Wilson, WildCare's executive director, said the report she got from her staff was the elk was dehydrated and emaciated and had been eating sand in the wild.
"That is not normal behavior for an elk. It was sick," she said.
But officials with the Point Reyes National Seashore said the behaviors of the elk - most likely a newborn - are all normal and it was healthy.
"Deer and elk go into this hiding behavior and they just lie down and are very still," said Don Neubacher, park superintendent. "The mother then comes back and feeds it. The animal was very healthy. He took a healthy (elk) out of the park."
Park officials note the tule elk is protected in California, that there are only 3,600 in the entire state and there have been efforts to reintroduce a population in the seashore.
Roettger could face a fine or citation, but his actions are not unique, officials said.
"People think they are helping the wildlife, but that is not the case," said Colin Smith, the park's chief ranger. "We have not cited anyone for what they essentially, in essence, thought was the right thing to do. The bottom line is if you see an animal in distress it's best to report that to the park."
Park officials will interview Roettger Monday to determine what, if any, action will be taken.
As for the elk, it will not return to West Marin because of concern it could introduce to other elk diseases that it might have picked up outside the park, and because it has lost its fear of humans.
"Unfortunately, in these cases, the animal has to be put down or is sent to a zoo for its entire life," said Terry Palmisano, senior wildlife biologist with the state Department of Fish and Game. "That is the sentence they are given when they are handled by humans."
There is some hope that this elk may make its way to an educational wildlife preserve, Pal- misano said, although nothing has been confirmed.
Roettger still believes if he had not intervened, the animal would have been dead.
"It feels like they wanted to let it die and I wanted to save it," he said.
Bureaucracy versus Bambi.
Mark Prado
That's how one San Anselmo resident is viewing his attempt to save a young tule elk from what he believed was certain death in the Point Reyes National Seashore. Now, Andrew Roettger is worried he might be fined or cited for his actions.
Wildlife officials say Roettger would have been wise to leave the young elk alone, noting that it is illegal to remove animals from the park.
"It's not as though I wanted to gut the thing and eat it," Roettger said. "I fed it Straus milk for God's sake. I was trying to be a good citizen."
In early June, Roettger was diving near Elephant Rock in West Marin. When he came out of the water he noticed what he thought was a sickly young deer. He went back into the water and again saw the animal on the way out.
"Its ribs were sticking out, it didn't open its eyes. It didn't look good at all," he said. "It looked like it had been abandoned."
He drove home with the thoughts of the animal weighing on his mind. He told his 14-year-old daughter, Robin, about the animal and they drove back out to West Marin to rescue it.
"It was still there, and I don't think it would have made it to the next morning," Roettger said. "We put it in the back of the Rover with a blanket and drove home. I didn't know it was an elk."
By the time they got home, it was too late to contact anyone who could help, so the animal was left in the vehicle overnight.
"I fed it Straus Farms half-and-half and kept an eye on it," Roettger said.
He then contacted WildCare, a San Rafael-based wildlife rehabilitation group, which took the animal and cared for it.
Karen Wilson, WildCare's executive director, said the report she got from her staff was the elk was dehydrated and emaciated and had been eating sand in the wild.
"That is not normal behavior for an elk. It was sick," she said.
But officials with the Point Reyes National Seashore said the behaviors of the elk - most likely a newborn - are all normal and it was healthy.
"Deer and elk go into this hiding behavior and they just lie down and are very still," said Don Neubacher, park superintendent. "The mother then comes back and feeds it. The animal was very healthy. He took a healthy (elk) out of the park."
Park officials note the tule elk is protected in California, that there are only 3,600 in the entire state and there have been efforts to reintroduce a population in the seashore.
Roettger could face a fine or citation, but his actions are not unique, officials said.
"People think they are helping the wildlife, but that is not the case," said Colin Smith, the park's chief ranger. "We have not cited anyone for what they essentially, in essence, thought was the right thing to do. The bottom line is if you see an animal in distress it's best to report that to the park."
Park officials will interview Roettger Monday to determine what, if any, action will be taken.
As for the elk, it will not return to West Marin because of concern it could introduce to other elk diseases that it might have picked up outside the park, and because it has lost its fear of humans.
"Unfortunately, in these cases, the animal has to be put down or is sent to a zoo for its entire life," said Terry Palmisano, senior wildlife biologist with the state Department of Fish and Game. "That is the sentence they are given when they are handled by humans."
There is some hope that this elk may make its way to an educational wildlife preserve, Pal- misano said, although nothing has been confirmed.
Roettger still believes if he had not intervened, the animal would have been dead.
"It feels like they wanted to let it die and I wanted to save it," he said.
