Our Newest Guests: Meet the Baby Deer

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The discussion revolves around the excitement of photographing deer, particularly fawns, that have been frequenting the barn office. The original poster shares their experience of learning to use a new camera and captures images of these deer, sparking a lively conversation about wildlife interactions. Participants recount personal encounters with deer, including techniques for approaching them calmly to build trust. There is concern expressed for a newborn fawn that has lost its mother, with suggestions for care, such as providing food and water. The conversation also touches on the presence of other wildlife, like skunks and snakes, and the unique experiences of living near a forested area. Participants share their appreciation for the beauty of nature and the joy of observing and interacting with wildlife, while also discussing the potential dangers posed by larger animals like bears and mountain lions. The thread captures a blend of humor, concern for animal welfare, and the thrill of wildlife photography.
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OMG! I hate you! MINE!

Look at those faces! I need to juice them!
 
We were camping along Skyline Drive a few years ago when a doe and her fawn wandered into our campsite. She didn't catch wind of me until her fawn was about 10 feet away from me. At that point she situated herself between me and it pretty hastily and then off they ambled for safer (in her opinion) browsing.
 
Jimmy Snyder said:
We were camping along Skyline Drive a few years ago when a doe and her fawn wandered into our campsite. She didn't catch wind of me until her fawn was about 10 feet away from me. At that point she situated herself between me and it pretty hastily and then off they ambled for safer (in her opinion) browsing.

I am the deer wheeesperer.

Truly, I've been learning deer for years now. Long slow blinks, a slumped body, frequently look down or away, turn your back for a few moments, talk in a low, smooth, calm voice, approach in small steps, little by little... Over time they lose their fear and get more and more trusting as long as you don't make any sudden moves. Blow it once and it's all over with that one!

On one occasion, with a young deer I had been working all summer, I too managed to get within ten feet or so but while she saw me coming! I've managed to get pretty close quite a few time but I only got THAT close once.

Tsu is the skunk wheeesperer. I can't tell you her trick because it might get me banned.
 
Evo said:
OMG! I hate you! MINE!

Look at those faces! I need to juice them!

:smile: :smile: :smile:
 
Houston, we have a problem. Tsu doesn't even know this yet.

I have a newborn baby deer who has lost its mom living in and around the outer area of the barn. There are plenty of grasses and water [the creek is still flowing a bit, amazingly!], and she/he is eating, but I guess I should see what else I can do. Perhaps a salt lick... Geez.

I thought she found her mom yesterday but apparently it was the wrong deer.
 
Is there a wildlife sanctuary anywhere near you? If you have to bottle feed, you really will become a dear of a deer. *wink* Hope the fawn gets help soon, not sure how long they can go without mothers milk.
 
Evo said:
I need to juice them!

Now does this mean something I don't know, or should I be horrified right now?
 
Disconnected said:
Now does this mean something I don't know, or should I be horrified right now?
Cute things are FAT, and that makes them JUICY, and you have to juice the fat.

In other words you need to gently squeeze the soft parts. Or pet them or hug them.

Is this weird? I thought everyone did this. :blushing:
 
  • #10
Ivan Seeking said:
Houston, we have a problem. Tsu doesn't even know this yet.

I have a newborn baby deer who has lost its mom living in and around the outer area of the barn. There are plenty of grasses and water [the creek is still flowing a bit, amazingly!], and she/he is eating, but I guess I should see what else I can do. Perhaps a salt lick... Geez.

I thought she found her mom yesterday but apparently it was the wrong deer.

Oh NO! :cry::cry: I didn't hear it crying this morning so I thought everything was ok...
 
  • #11
Tsu said:
Oh NO! :cry::cry: I didn't hear it crying this morning so I thought everything was ok...
OH NO! You must get it help! :cry: :cry: It's going to die from dehydration.
 
  • #12
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  • #13
Ivan Seeking said:
Wait... wait... wait... I think this is the same one. I know we had one mom with one baby, and another with two. I can't tell for sure who's who! :cry:

*cough*paintball*cough*
 
  • #14
What type of deer are those? The fawns seem quite fluffy compared to what I'm used to.

Very fun pictures.
 
  • #15
Evo said:
Cute things are FAT, and that makes them JUICY, and you have to juice the fat.

In other words you need to gently squeeze the soft parts. Or pet them or hug them.

Is this weird? I thought everyone did this. :blushing:
Okay, so what I am getting here is that you want to hug the cute baby deer, and not anything creepee or disturbing. Am I right? If not, please do not correct me...
 
  • #16
Disconnected said:
Okay, so what I am getting here is that you want to hug the cute baby deer, and not anything creepee or disturbing. Am I right? If not, please do not correct me...
Yes. :-p
 
  • #17
mege said:
What type of deer are those? The fawns seem quite fluffy compared to what I'm used to.

Very fun pictures.

Wester-Oregon black tail, I think.

Btw, no joke about Tsu being the skunk wheeesperer. If one comes in the house through the cat access, which happens at times in the spring and early summer, she tells it to leave, and it leaves! She must make just the right sound. If I tell it to leave, it ignores me.
 
  • #19
Oh <choke> gasp <cough>, the laser eyes! :smile:

OMG! Those are great pictures! You're so lucky!
 
  • #20
Or maybe mule deer... I always wanted to think we had black-tail deer but it seems I was corrected on this point... maybe by Integral.
 
  • #21
Ivan Seeking said:
Or maybe mule deer... I always wanted to think we had black-tail deer but it seems I was corrected on this point... maybe by Integral.

Ivan Seeking said:
...

http://img153.imageshack.us/img153/1330/deer3v.jpg

We have white tail deer here and I've never seen a mule deer in the wilds, but I think those ears are a dead give away.
 
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  • #23
Ivan Seeking said:
I guess I should have posted this in the photos section.
Or the food thread. :devil:

where's turbo?
 
  • #25
Evo said:
Oh <choke> gasp <cough>, the laser eyes! :smile:

Yeah, I watch the moms with the young one pretty closely when I get close. And they watch me. I keep waiting for one to decide I've gotten too close and have her rush me. I know the bucks will sometimes charge during rutting season. I don't know if females will or not.

Not a deer to be seen today. This is the first time in weeks that I haven't seen them around.

OMG! Those are great pictures! You're so lucky!

We love this time of year around here. It's like living in a national park... in fact, basically we do. In addition to our own little forest and grassland, we are right up against State-owned forests that extend for many miles. I think one could start from our front porch and hike in nothing but wilderness all the way to Idaho, at least.

I keep hoping to get some shots of bald eagles.

This is why I don't need to take vacations. Before we moved here, places like this WERE our vacations.
 
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  • #26
Keep the pictures coming! All I have are some baby squirrels and baby birds.
 
  • #27
I see a PF Photo Contest poster in the making.
 
  • #28
Oh dear, is it just me...

http://www.nature-gifts.com/1126-squirrel-feeders.html
 
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  • #29
Here's a baby face for you. I am pretty sure this was our lost baby, who is now safe and sound with momma.

http://img812.imageshack.us/img812/2374/deer12.jpg

http://img845.imageshack.us/img845/1858/deer11.jpg

http://img683.imageshack.us/img683/3886/deer10.jpg

This was cool. Another bit of non-predatory body language that I've tried is the curious tilt of the head, as a dog or cat might do. I was guessing that this may be a somewhat universal non-agression signal, or even a signal of playfulness, and the fawns definitely respond to this. This fawn and I had direct eye contact going at about thirty feet. When I tilted my head, she immediately responded and took two quick steps towards me. I tilted my head the other way and she hurried a few more steps towards me. It worked a third time but then mom intervened and forced a little distance.
 
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  • #30
Evo said:
Oh dear, is it just me...

http://www.nature-gifts.com/1126-squirrel-feeders.html
Oh, uh... Oh my. Not just you.

Ivan Seeking said:
This was cool. Another bit of non-predatory body language that I've tried is the curious tilt of the head, as a dog or cat might do. I was guessing that this may be a somewhat universal non-agression signal, or even a signal of playfulness, and the fawns definitely respond to this. This fawn and I had direct eye contact going at about thirty feet. When I tilted my head, she immediately responded and took two quick steps towards me. I tilted my head the other way and she hurried a few more steps towards me. It worked a third time but then mom intervened and forced a little distance.

That's pretty cool, man. I wasn't surprised when you said that the right body language can let you move closer to the deer, but for it to actually move towards you is super neat.
 
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  • #31
So sweet!
 
  • #32
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  • #33
Aww, the babies are so CUUUTE!

Ack, what kind of snake is that?
 
  • #34
As far as I know, it's just a common garter snake.

Unfortunately, Little Tyke is particularly fond of and proficient at catching snakes and releasing them in my office. She plays with them for a minute or two and then walks away [unless she eats it].
 
  • #35
Ivan Seeking said:
As far as I know, it's just a common garter snake.

Unfortunately, Little Tyke is particularly fond of and proficient at catching snakes and releasing them in my office. She plays with them for a minute or two and then walks away [unless she eats it].

Im told its a yellow racer...
 
  • #36
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  • #37
Those are great!
 
  • #38
That's the one that went strolling past the window as I was getting ready for work today. She is SOOOOO CUUUUTTTTE! :biggrin: I want to juice THAT one... :smile:
 
  • #39
Tsu said:
That's the one that went strolling past the window as I was getting ready for work today. She is SOOOOO CUUUUTTTTE! :biggrin: I want to juice THAT one... :smile:
It does look very, very juicy!
 
  • #40
You Addams girls! My wife juices fruits and vegetables to make smoothies for her breakfast, but she never told me to bring her some baby wild ruminants. Wouldn't want be around for that juicing.
 
  • #41
Tsu said:
Im told its a yellow racer...

I don't think that's right, tho. I googled yellow racer with red head and got nada... Bupkiss!... I think Ivans right. Just a commom garter... Some do have read heads...
 
  • #42
Tsu said:
I don't think that's right, tho. I googled yellow racer with red head and got nada... Bupkiss!... I think Ivans right. Just a commom garter... Some do have read heads...

Listen to you... "Just a common garter"

When we first moved here, Tsu would get ill and had to lie down if she saw a snake. We've come a long way! :biggrin:
 
  • #43
I spent the majority of my making money time in the bush planting trees. Sorry, no pictures to offer you, too busy making 10 to 20 cents a tree.
Deer get abandoned by their mothers when they reach adolescence and are capapble of taking care of themselves. Psychologically (a deer?) they still seem to need and seek companionship. I've had deer of this age (probably 8 months to a bit over a year) hang out with me, grazing as close as 10 feet (3 meters) for hours while I was working. It's neat to be that close to wildlife and be accepted.
I once did a contract in an area that had been designated as part of a park. The logging had been done a few years previously and the deer by the time we came to plant the area were mostly a generation away from being shot at by people.We woke up most mornings with them milling around the area almost oblivious to us.

mathal
 
  • #44
I just had a friend here who is an avid hunter. We took a little walk, and within a few minutes he was able to identify not only elk droppings, but BEAR droppings! I've had a bear right outside of my office within the last two months or so.

We've never seen an elk or a bear around here in the over twenty years that we've been here, but I know this guy knows his shhhhhh...um, stuff.

The good news is that he didn't see any evidence of mountain lions, which is my biggest concern. They have been around at times in years past but the local ranchers take care of any problems right away. The next biggest concern would be the presense of coyotes that might eat our cats, but we haven't seen or heard of any problems there for some time. I am almost 100% certain that I saw a wolf one day. It was a fair distance away, but I clearly saw it hop over a five-foot cow fence with hardly any effort. The build and gate was distinctly different from a normal dog, and it must have been too big to be a coyote to hop a fence like that. It almost looked like he stepped over it, rather than jump. That was when my jaw dropped.
 
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  • #45
I had to check anyway just to be sure. It does look like an exact match for black bear droppings. That really amazes me. The elk isn't as surprising, but I never thought bears would come this far down out of the mountains. Good to know! At least now I know it's a possibility. First contact with no warning could be quite a shock.

I have heard things in the outer part of the barn at night a few times that sounded too big to be a cat or racoon. Once I found some things that I had stacked that had shifted. This was quite perplexing as it seemed far too heavy for anything I could think of to move it. The possibility of a bear makes sense. I have always wondered what could have caused that.

What was amazing was how many things my buddy found in just a few minutes of walking around. But this guy grew up in a family full of big-game hunters. It was obvious that his ability to find tracks and scat were nearly instinctive.
 

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