Community concerned after deer spotted with Halloween bucket stuck on its head

Neighbors in Pittsburgh's Squirrel Hill neighborhood are concerned about a deer with a Halloween bucket stuck on its head.

The bucket, which appears to be a plastic jack-o'-lantern, may seem like a laughing matter to some, but not Karen Bloch.

"For five days, I've had a deer that has not eaten and has not had a drink," Bloch said. "If it doesn't get removed in the next day or so, this animal is going to die. I can see it getting weaker now."

The deer is a member of a herd that Bloch says she sees next to her home every day.

"I have watched this deer with its siblings since it was born, and now it's a yearling," she said. "They're here every night. There's a herd of five. It's a family that comes."

Bloch even leaves apples for the deer, but now she says the deer with the bucket on its head can't eat. Bloch said she would remove the bucket herself, but the deer has not gotten close enough to her. 

She said she has tried calling agencies like the Pennsylvania Game Commission and the city's Bureau of Animal Care and Control, but those calls have fallen on deaf ears. She'd like them to tranquilize the deer, remove the bucket, and let it free. 

"They said they only look in the daytime. They don't come at night," Bloch said. 

Night is when she always sees the deer. 

"It sickens me because I happen to love animals, and it sickens me that there are people who could help and are not willing to do it in the time frame that the deer is here," Bloch said. 

She said she doesn't want to see the animal die from human neglect — the neglect of whoever left the bucket out and those who could be helping but are not.

However, Bloch recognizes that many people don't like deer, but she said they are still animals that should not have to struggle.

Bloch said she did not see the herd of deer on Friday night, which was strange.