As a gardener it's fairly normal to see deer as an enemy. We chase them from the garden and build fences and cages to keep them from eating our prized plants. They are in a word, a nuisance. But then this time of year comes around. The other day as I drove the garden tractor to the back I spotted a doe with her new fawn. Mom went to the right hoping to draw my attention and the baby went to the left. The baby made itself small and didn't move a muscle but I could see it from the path. I couldn't resist taking the tiny fawn's picture.
I was delighted to get as close as I did to the tiny thing, but left quickly not wishing to do any harm. Ed was watching and he said as soon as my back was turned the fawn got up and ran away.
It was early on this rainy morning when I looked out of my kitchen window to see a doe and a brand new, born today, fawn. The baby was tiny, wet and wobbly. I caught sight of the pair again outside the west end of the house. Ed and I watched as the mother methodically licked her new fawn. Watching what she was doing made me glad I'm not a deer. She was clearly trying to stimulate the fawn to nurse. Once she accomplished that goal she would move a bit to encourage the fawn to follow her. Clearly she feels right at home here. She has much to teach her fawn on this its first day if it is to survive. Sometimes we forget that we were the ones who placed our home right in the middle of hers.
It will be hard to chase the mothers and babies from the garden for awhile. In the meantime we will enjoy watching them. The fawns will not stay small for long. Soon they will be running fast and growing by leaps and bounds. The fact that a whole new generation of plant munching critters is arriving here is not lost on me, but as long as they are so cute and have their spots, I'm enchanted.
No comments:
Post a Comment