Dog walkers urged to be responsible around deer going into birthing season
May and June are when deer across the country go into birthing season
Local dog owners are being urged to keep an eye on their dogs around deer as we go into birthing season
May and June is birthing season for deer meaning they're often extra sensitive
Councillor Adam Deuce is the portfolio holder for Environment and Sustainability at Waverley Borough Council, which oversees Farnham Park
He told us about why the message is so important to get out now
"It's a particularly sensitive period for wildlife and obviously disturbance, usually from dogs, can cause stress or separation or injury to deer during quite a sensitive time. So that's why lots of councils are communicating that information out to residents and visitors."
Adam added although owners are for the most part good, the main problems occur due to lack of attention
"I think people think, understandably, that their dogs are well behaved and that they have trained them well and of course that might be the case.
But as soon as you let a dog off the lead and you might be distracted on your phone speaking with people who you're with in the park, then your eyes might not be on your dog and if they've got a natural predatory instinct, they can go off chasing animals."
Adam also urged the public to make sure they quickly report any incidents they witness
"There could be issues where a council officer might not be able to respond to enforcing in a public space protection order without evidence. So sometimes, unfortunately, an incident will happen.
It's really important that if members of the public witness a situation where a dog, for example, has chased a deer or in any way injured wildlife, that they report to the council the circumstances as quickly as possible rather than there being a delay and therefore the council being unable to take action immediately"