I have 3 deer in my backyard.

[Raven]

God! They are really beautiful and graceful. They are showing up here more frequently lately. Hunting season started today and I wonder if they find this place a sanctuary. How could anybody kill these beautiful animals? I know, somebody is going to tell me that they are too plentiful and eat peoples' shrubs. I have a very lush vegetable garden here and they don't go near it because of the dogs. I think I hate hunting!

[Midlodemocrat]

1. I have them in my backyard as well.

Beautiful, beautiful creatures. Unfortunately because of all the development around here, they're ending up with nowhere to go. :(

I love watching them. And, I hate hunting, too.

[Orsino]

2. Here are mine, a few weeks ago.

As of last night, the babies still have spots.

[Raven]

4. My deer babies have the spots too but they seem bigger than the ones in

your picture. What I want to know is...do deer mommas have two babies? I noptice you have two and I have two. Amazing!

[liberaltrucker]

5. Yes, does can have twins, but it's about as rare as human twins

Ain't Nature wonderful?

:toast:

[DemReadingDU]

12. Does can have triplets too!

BUTLER TWP., Montgomery County — An unusual family has taken to roaming the streets of the Turtle Creek development in Butler Twp.

Since May, a doe and her triplets have made themselves at home, showing up just before dusk and leisurely winding their way through people's yards, sampling flowers, shrubs and even veggies from backyard gardens, seemingly without concern.

"Sometimes the mom will be out with one, sometimes all three," resident Susan Pettitt said. "They just wander the neighborhood."

The nightly visits are uniting area homeowners behind a common cause — photography. The deer have become local celebrities, bringing homeowners out to chat about sightings and compare their photographs.

"Somebody will yell, 'There's a deer out here,' and everyone comes out and starts taking photos," Pettitt said.

The deer have shown little fear of their paparazzi. Pettitt has seen the fawns munching on flowers right next to people's front doors, and Melissa Love said the deer have come within 10 feet of her family.

"They just hang out in our yard. We see them almost every day," Love said.

Pettitt said at first she thought the doe had adopted a fawn, but learned through Internet research that triplets are possible on high-quality ranges.

Sue Smith, a naturalist with Five Rivers MetroParks, said she has seen deer with triplets at Englewood MetroPark. She said the multiple births could indicate access to a safe, secure feeding range, as well as genetics.

Commenting that the deer population is very high in this area, Smith said it's not unusual for deer to become "very comfortable" around people. "They do just fine in an urban setting," she said.

Still, she cautioned, people should be cautious.

"They are wild animals and can be unpredictable, especially a mom with her babies," Smith said, recommending against feeding the deer.

"It's not a good idea for wildlife to rely on humans for food."

Smith said fawns are usually born in late May or early June and weaned by four months.


http://www.daytondailynews.com/search/content/oh/story/news/local/neighbors/2007/08/23/ddn082307z5triplet.html

[blockhead]

15. actually

About 79 percent of pregnant whitetail does carry twins or triplets, while only 52 percent of pregnant mule deer does have multiple births.

[Orsino]

14. Yeah, they've grown in the month or two since I took the picture.

My wife and I were just out walking dogs this morning, and saw momma with just one fawn ten feet from the house. These seem to be part of a group of seven that used to parade through our yard almost every night, and I believe there are three new babies. We never see more than four deer at a time lately.

[stuntcat]

6. omg

how beautiful!! :loveya: I hope those two live long happy deer lives!

[liberaltrucker]

3. Graceful, beautiful, and wily

I hunt, but miss much more than I hit. Alabama has a one a day, three in possession limit.
However, no matter how well the hunt is planned: keeping downwind, quiet, no reflective
surfaces on the gun or clothing, etc these elusive creatures usually outsmart even the
most experienced hunters. Macho bragging notwithstanding, most hunters go thru the season with
just one, if they're lucky. Funny thing is, when I'm "hunting" with a camera, using the same
tactics, my luck is much better. :shrug:

Consider this: Venison is MUCH healthier than commercial meats. Less fat(wild animals aren't "fattened up"
at feed lots), more minerals nutrients(they know where to find them in nature), higher quality protein.

Here's a true hunting story I hope you like:
About 10 years ago, on the first day of hunting season I was crouched behind a (ugh) bush downwind
from a meadow. Just before sunrise, a magnificent buck walked into the meadow. This dude had to be
at least 10 points, a Boone and Crockett trophy. He was followed by about 12 does-impressive! I
adjusted the scope and centered the crosshair on his jugular, but.....I couldn't pull the trigger.
You see, he had beaten the odds. Predators, hunters, cars, disease could've taken him, but didn't.
He had fought off his male competitors to achieve his status in the herd. And I had totally lucked
out. I didn't consider myself worthy of taking him. I pointed the rifle at a tree and fired.

Yes, I hunt. I also appreciate the beauty of Nature.

[amitten]

17. Here in Texas, they sell special feed you put out to attract them.

While they are eating, the brave and resourceful and sportsmanlike "hunters" shoot at them.

Fuckers. :mad:

If you can't do it fair and square, don't do it. I'd love to see one of these macho men take on a deer with his bare hands. Hmm...I wonder who would come out alive...?

[Skittles]

7. it disgusts me that people shoot them

and they find it an oh-so-swell thing to do :puke:

[Fire Walk With Me]

16. Anything that radiates peace and beauty must be destroyed.

Developers are the same, but they don't use guns.

People destroy what threatens them. In this way, animals are far superior to people.

[Swede]

8. The things you see,when you don't have a gun.

I am kidding of course.

[Generic Brad]

9. I saw 7 deer today

And I agree with you 100%.

[HughBeaumont]

10. Avon Lake has been deer central lately.

Deer are graceful and haunting animals to look at. Generally timid, they lurk in the distance of humans. With the chopping down of trees for subdivisions here, the places for them to roam and graze in private are becoming few and far between.

Three years ago, a just-out-of-baby-stage deer came up to my front yard while I was having a barbecue. It was an amazing sight. All the kids pet and fed it. I know, you're not supposed to do that, but who cares. It was led back into the wild later on.

[amitten]

18. The loss of habitat makes me so sad I can't stand it.

Can't stand the thought of beautiful animals with nowhere to live...their homes stolen from them.

:-(

[DemReadingDU]

11. We have deer near our neighborhood

Our plat has about 50 houses, so it does seem odd to be out walking and seeing deer running down the street. But just outside of the plat is farm country and a small forest of trees. I guess the deer live there.

[NewWaveChick1981]

13. We have deer in our neighborhood area too.

:) I am awestruck when I see them. They are graceful and beautiful, and even my screambarking dogs are quiet and respectful when they see them :D Last weekend, my husband and I were coming back from the grocery store around dusk (dogs were in the car with us), and we saw a doe, a buck, and a fawn disappear into the woods not far from our house. :) It was a beautiful sight!

You're lucky to have them in your yard. :) And I cannot stand the thought of deer hunters destroying these beautiful creatures (or any other animal) for blood sport. :grr: :cry: If they want to eat my shrubs, it's OK. Deer need to eat too. :)

[applegrove]

19. I saw one today. So many people had stopped along the trail to watch her.

Seems like she was this season's baby but looking all grown up. She ignored us all and kept on looking for food. Goegeous for sure.