Three people from the Ministry of Natural Resources’ Dryden District, known as the “I-Team,” have been trained to immobilize animals that pose a threat to public safety or themselves.
As part of the training, the staff practised their marksmanship skills at the Dryden Rifle and Pistol Club’s range last Wednesday (Sept. 29). They used two types of immobilization guns as well as a 12-ga. shotgun.
Rick Vincent, area technician and a veteran in immobilization and capture techniques, helped Dorothy Brunner (area technician) and John Allen (“Bear Wise” program technician) hone their skills.
Both Brunner and Allen had received immobilization training for the first time this past spring.
“It’s extremely important to regularly test yourself as well as your equipment to ensure that you can act efficiently and effectively during an emergency situation,” said Vincent.
“There is a lot to remember if you plan to immobilize an animal,” he noted. “You have to be confident in yourself that you have all the bases covered and that you can act on the numbers, each and every time.
“You can be confronted with a whole host of variables when you arrive on the scene,” Vincent added. “There could be bystanders, police officers directing operations, and animals caught in a variety of scenarios.”
Vincent said the Harrington and Richardson break-action capture gun has been used to immobilize animals since the mid-1970s and still is used today.
“It’s the old reliable which has been time-tested,” he noted. “It uses the .22 blank cartridge to propel the dart. The newer dart guns are gas-propelled and look similar to a paintball gun.”
The team also trained with a 12-ga. shotgun. A technician engaged in an immobilization of a bear must be backed up with another technician armed with the shotgun.
This is standard safety procedure in case an immobilization doesn’t go as planned and an animal has to be put down.
Immobilizing an animal is not common practice and is used only in special circumstances.
For example, if a sow is caught in a trap and a cub is wandering nearby, the easiest and safest way to capture the cub is to immobilize it so it can be re-united with the sow once it is released.
In the past, Vincent has tranquilized a deer caught in a fence as well as a buck which had locked horns with another buck while fighting.
One deer had died during the battle while the other one was dragging the dead carcass.
In each situation, the animals were set free to live another day.
Fort Frances Times
Local News from Across the Rainy River District
