Michigan is notorious for car versus deer accidents that leave carcasses on the side of the road waiting to be disposed of but that wait has gone on too long for one Mid-Michigan woman.
On Pinch road near Potterville, drivers are doing a double take.
“We were sleeping, woke up in the morning, and a car had hit it during the night,” said homeowner Penny Ruff.
By morning, Ruff had a deer dead in the front yard
“We called the sheriff's department they referred us to the road commission,” said Ruff. “We thought we had it taken care of and the road commission was going to come and get it as far as what we knew.”
But after a week the carcass was still there.
Eaton County's Road Commission said the Michigan Department of Natural Resources needed to test it for Chronic Wasting Disease.
“You can't throw it to your neighbor’s property, what do you do with a dead deer?” said Ruff.
She knew exactly what to do, putting a sign next to it.
“The sign says ‘Died! Waiting for the DNR’," said Ruff.
Between a stench and four small pets, Ruff worries about wild animals and is very serious about having it removed.
However among drivers, it’s a hit.
“We've had people stop and take pictures and laugh, they think it’s hilarious,” said Ruff. “(They’ll) shake our hand for putting the sign out there so it was kind of ‘tee-hee’ we're waiting for the DNR.”
Ruff doesn't believe the deer actually had Chronic Wasting Disease but now worries the deer in her front yard is chronically wasting.
“I might change the sign to Chronic Wasting Disease if they don't hurry up,” said Ruff.
By Thursday afternoon, Ruff told News 10 the Eaton County Road Commission had removed the deer from her property.
