Injured Canada goose at Warren Peace Bunny Sanctuary in Lake Country.

Image Credit: SUBMITTED/ Antoinette Monod

A Canada goose was found with a hunting arrow embedded in its body near the Creekside Village senior’s complex in Vernon.

The owner of a rabbit sanctuary in Lake Country, Antoinette Monod, got a call from BC Wildlife about the problem yesterday, April 24.

“BC Wildlife is in Burnaby and don’t necessarily know the people or lay of the land here so sometimes they call us,” Monod said. “We’re not legally approved to care for wildlife but we’re able to capture it, assess the situation and get it to a vet or wildlife facility.”

A volunteer with the sanctuary went to retrieve the injured bird, skeptical he’d find it, but the bird “hobbled straight toward him.” The Interior Wildlife Rehabilitation Society arranged for the bird to be dropped off at an animal hospital where it was later put down due to the extent of its injuries.

Monod is emotional about the incident which, she said, “had to be deliberate.”

“The arrow that was used is a hunting arrow for a deer or moose, it’s super sharp and does a lot of damage,” she said. “Even if they got the arrowhead out, the damage created would have cause the bird to suffer. Some person went out with a huge hunting arrow and deliberately shot a goose then left it to suffer and die.”

An arrow sticking out of a Canada goose found in Vernon.

Image Credit: SUBMITTED/ Antoinette Monod

The Interior Wildlife Rehabilitation Society in Summerland was ready to care for if called upon. 

“Cases like this get reported to the RAPP (anti-poaching) line,” she said in an email to iNFOnews.ca. “We hope this human-caused injury on a protected migratory species was an isolated incident.”

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Monod said she is grateful so many people helped, from the lady who reported the injured goose, to the volunteer who did the rescue, to the one who did the driving, to Interior Wildlife and the VCA Tri Lake veterinary staff, while still shaken by the nature of the incident.

“This goose would have suffered more if not for all of these people,” she said. “But on the other side, this was evil, and as humans we need to do better.”

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Monod’s Warren Peace Bunny Sanctuary in Lake Country takes in abandoned bunnies that are either surrendered or found abandoned outdoors. They spay and neuter the bunnies, then take them in or find them homes.

You can report poaching by calling the RAPP (Report All Poachers and Polluters) at 1-877-952-7277 or online here.

To contact a reporter for this story, email Shannon Ainslie or call 250-819-6089 or email the editor. You can also submit photos, videos or news tips to the newsroom and be entered to win a monthly prize draw.

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