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A piebald deer runs along the Farmingdale Trail in East Hempfield Township on April 14, 2025. The Pennsylvania Game Commission is investigating the apparent shooting of the deer, which was reported on Saturday, Oct. 10, 2025, to the commission.<\/p>\n
DAN NEPHIN | Staff Writer
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\u2018It\u2019s a real loss\u2019<\/p>\n
Keener said he and his son Sam would regularly walk the trail to catch a glimpse of the rare juvenile buck, which was about 3 years old.<\/p>\n
Lau said piebald deer are generally reported at rates of under 1% of the overall deer population.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cWhile the percentage is small though, piebald deer sightings are rather common because piebalds are out there among the population,\u201d Lau said.<\/p>\n
While most piebald deer develop additional deformities, such as crooked limbs or spinal conditions, Keener said the deer appeared to be healthy. He and his family had watched it grow from practically a fawn into a buck with seven pointed antlers this summer.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s the closest thing I\u2019ve experienced to losing a pet,\u201d Keener said. \u201cIt\u2019s a real loss.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Keener said his son regularly took photos of the deer, and proudly displays one of his photos in his college dorm room.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cIt was a hard phone call to make,\u201d Keener said, \u201cto tell him what happened.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u2018It\u2019s just a tragedy\u2019<\/p>\n
Lancaster County Judge David Ashworth, who also lives near the trail, said the deer was always a welcome sight, even when it was eating the bushes in his backyard.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cThe deer was sort of like a neighborhood mascot,\u201d Ashworth said. \u201cIt\u2019s just a tragedy.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
The deer would regularly wander from the trail and Noel Dorwart Park into nearby neighborhoods and didn\u2019t seem to mind being around people, Ashworth said, describing it as all but a pet.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Ashworth said he and many of his neighbors were distressed when they learned the deer was killed and left near the trail.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cThat\u2019s not sporting hunting, that’s vandalism,\u201d Ashworth said.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Ashworth said he would be worried if someone is hunting or using firearms near the popular trail.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cThere\u2019s adults, there are kids, that area is always busy, especially with the improvements done to the trail,\u201d Ashworth said. \u201cTo have people hunting in that area just isn\u2019t safe.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
The Pennsylvania Game Commission urges anyone with information about the dead piebald deer to contact its 24-hour dispatch center at 833-742-4868, or its Operation Game Thief hotline at 1-888-742-8001. Reports also can be made here<\/a>.<\/p>\n