Longueuil deer slaughter this fall: appeal obtained by opponents

MONTREAL — The City of Longueuil will not yet be able to go ahead with its plan to kill deer in Michel-Chartrand Park in order to counter the overpopulation of these animals.

The Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (SPCA) of Montreal reports that the Quebec Court of Appeal has granted its request to appeal a Superior Court decision that recently refused to order the stay of the felling project that the City of Longueuil plans to undertake this fall.

The Montreal SPCA and the organization Sauvetage Animal Rescue considered that the Superior Court made several errors in its analysis.

The organization cites the Court of Appeal which wrote “that the situation is exceptional and that the best interests of justice require that leave to appeal be granted”.

The hearing of the appeal is scheduled for November 25.

Sophie Gaillard, acting executive director at the Montreal SPCA, argues that capturing and killing wild animals simply because they are believed to be harmful is no longer a socially acceptable method these days. She says there are examples elsewhere of responsible, ethical and innovative wildlife management, based on science and backed by expert advice.

The City of Longueuil, which invokes the urgency of acting in the face of the explosion of the deer population in Michel-Chartrand Park, affirms that the current impasse poses serious damage to the balance of the park’s biodiversity and to the regeneration of vegetation. She also claims that there is a greater risk of car accidents and an increase in cases of Lyme disease, which deer carry.

Since 2017, the deer herd in Michel-Chartrand Park has tripled to reach some 108 heads, while the park’s capacity is only 10 to 15 of these deer.