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Man fined for harassing deer near Hermosa

Incident is the second involving The Ranch resident Jerry Zelenka
Colorado Parks and Wildlife officials ask that for the safety of you, your pets and the deer, observe these animals from a distance.

A resident of The Ranch subdivision near Hermosa has paid a fine of $276.50 for siccing his dog on three deer earlier this month.

Jerry Zelenka paid the fine Friday, a Colorado Parks and Wildlife spokesman said Wednesday.

In October 2011, Zelenka paid a $70 fine for killing a great blue heron with a BB gun.

The most recent incident of harassing wildlife occurred about 10 a.m. Dec. 9.

In a statement to the agency, Warren Eaton said that from 100 yards he saw Zelenka raise the lowest strand of a barbed wire fence and release his dog, with shouts of encouragement, to chase three does grazing on the adjoining James Ranch.

The deer panicked, Eaton said. Two does leaped the fence, but the third one ran through the fence, leaving blood and fur on the barbs.

He confronted Zelenka, who said he was teaching the deer a lesson in case they encountered a pack of coyotes, Eaton said in the statement.

“He seemed very unconcerned with his behavior,” Eaton said.

In early October 2011, Zelenka shot a great blue heron, a species protected by the federal and state governments.

The bird is a nongame species, meaning there is no hunting season for it.

Neighbor Tori Williams said at the time that Zelenka fired his BB gun across her property to kill the great blue heron.

Williams said a wildlife officer told her a man complained about the heron feeding from a private pond stocked with fish.

Colorado Parks and Wildlife spokesman Joe Lewandowski said Wednesday that deer and elk particularly are vulnerable at this time of year.

“They’re barely hanging on,” Lewandowski said. “Any harassment that causes them to expend energy is detrimental to them.”

State law prohibits the harassment of wildlife, Lewandowski said.

daler@durangoherald.com



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