Man arrested for keeping deer, peacocks as pets

Çetin Aydın - ISTANBUL

A man has been taken into custody by Istanbul police after they discovered several peacocks and a dozen endangered deer, which are prohibited from being kept as pets, in his villa’s garden in the Silivri district.

Upon receiving notifications that there were deer and peacocks in the garden of a villa in the Silivri district, the Anti-Smuggling Crimes Branch Directorate dispatched its teams to the site.

As part of the CITES Convention (the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora), trading deer and peacocks and feeding them at home is prohibited.

Within the scope of the police operation, 12 wild deer and six peacocks were found in the garden of the villa.

The owner of the property and a person who was found to be feeding the animals were detained.

The seized animals were handed over to the Directorate of Nature Conservation and National Parks (DKMP).

In a statement released on its social media account, DKMP said deer and roe deer fawns encountered in nature should not be taken from their habitat and transferred to another environment, mistaking them for being motherless.

“Especially in May and June, there are many deer and roe deer fawns in nature. Citizens should take the wild animals whose mothers are not with them and bring them to the provincial organisations of our General Directorate or inform them. Wild animals should not be contacted directly in order for them not to smell like humans,” the statement also read.