Hail, Hail, the Gangs All Here… Plus More Baby Fawn Photos

/ Curt Mekemson
I looked out our door and this young fellow was staring through the glass panel at me.

They’re back.

For about three weeks all we saw around here on our property in the Applegate Valley of Southern Oregon were the two does that hang out here and their four fawns. We wondered about the absence of other deer. Maybe the does turn into ‘mama bears’ when their babies are so young and the other does, bucks, and youngsters find it wise to be elsewhere. That all changed this week. Four or five other does and a couple of bucks had come by to drink water and decided to hang around.

The young buck had certainly made himself at home. Our cement pad is relatively cool in the shade plus I had watered it down earlier. With temperatures climbing above 110° F, both wildlife and humans were suffering.
I had noted something strange about the pad earlier in the day. It was covered with new scratch marks, some going fairly deep. I called Peggy out to take a look. Had something big been using our patio to sharpen its claws. That was our first thought. The small buck sleeping there provided the likely answer, however. Deer like to make a bed before lying down. They use their hoofs to scratch out a shallow hole in the ground. Apparently, the young buck, or one of his cohorts had been trying to scratch a more comfortable place to sleep on the cement. Good luck with that…
His larger companion satisfied himself with a long, cool drink out of the birdbath, aka, local spring.
Misty, otherwise known as Top Doe, could have told the buck that the small stones we use in the patio are much easier to rearrange. I’m forever raking the stones out flat it seems. I had just sprayed Misty with cool water and her look seemed to be saying ‘more.’ Note; She still has to regain her girlish figure from having her twins.
Misty gives me her “You wouldn’t happen to have an apple, would you?” look. One of her fawns is in the back
Some of the gang. I took this photo from my writing chair in our library.

But enough on the adults. I know that the real reason you are here is to see the babies. The following photos are of Misty’s kids. Her daughter’s fawns were born a couple of weeks after Misty’s and are still too small to hang out with the adults. We tend to see them later in the evening.

What’s cuter than a fawn using mom as an obstacle course?
Answer: A baby snuggling up to mom. The tangle of legs in the background is pretty amusing as well.
Dinner time! BTW, I don’t know if you have ever watched fawns feed. It’s cute, but hardly gentle. As I noted in my last post, there’s a reason why does encourage their kids to start feeding themselves ASAP!
Like these flowers. Mmmm, mmmm good. Except…
“If I’ve told you once, I’ve told you a dozen times, you do not eat fake flowers! They will make you sick. Plus ‘The Peggy’ will be out here and give you a lecture. Believe me, you don’t want a lecture from her.”
“Okay, I’ll just eat these yucky old dry leaves.” Actually, all of the deer chow down on the Madrone leaves. The tree drops its leaves twice a year, including once in the summer. Eating the leaves is thirsty work, however….
“Hey, look at me, I’m tall enough to drink out of the big deer spring!”
“Big deal.”

“I’ve had it with you. I am going to talk to the all-knowing rooster…”
“Whoa, he told me if I walked up on the porch and looked in the window, I could see the Man. You need to get over and see this, Brother.”
“This is scary. I’m going to tip toe…”
“Do I dare look up?”
“OMG!”
“I’m out of here!”

And to finish off today’s post, a few more cute fawn photos…

And finally, Misty’s daughter brings her fawns by our living room window each evening. Eventually, they will grow into their ears.
And that’s it for the fawn photos this season. Maybe…

Other notes: The fox came by recently, trotting across our deck. A pair of California quail have been hanging around. Three days ago we spotted them with their family of tiny babies, maybe an inch tall. Our lavender is in full bloom, attracting hundreds of honey bees and dozens of bumble bees. We had a population explosion of ground squirrels. I’ve caught 86 so far and transported them across the river to Squirrel Village. They can be quite verbal in what they think about the relocation program. I’ve never heard such fowl language. Not even Rooster can match them.

Peggy celebrated her birthday today. Her brother and his wife Frances drop by tomorrow and we are off to Florida on Thursday to join our son, Tony, in celebrating his retirement from serving as a helicopter pilot for the Coast Guard. As you likely know, I am taking a break from regularly posting this summer. –Curt

31 thoughts on “Hail, Hail, the Gangs All Here… Plus More Baby Fawn Photos”

    • We never get enough of the cuties, Peggy, and always look forward to this time of year. As for the squirrels, at least we aren’t dealing with Australia’s mice… Thanks for the birthday wish. –Curt

      Reply

    • Thanks, G. It’s always fun in our little zoo. Looks like Elsa is turning into a hurricane and will be hitting Tampa a couple of days before we arrive. Hard to sy how the flights will be impacted. Or Tony’s retirement. The Coast Guard may very well be otherwise occupied. –Curt

      Reply

      • Elsa is north of Tampa right now @ 6:14 am, but the Coast Guard is always busy, so I can’t speak for them. Please shake Tony’s hand for me, Curt.

      • Tony had a great retirement ceremony with an emphasis on all of his accomplishments in his 23 years of service, G, from fighting in Iraq to saving numerous lives, to coordinating rescue efforts during hurricanes. We were quite proud. –Curt

  5. How lovely to have the whole family back! You’re doing a great job keeping them cool and watered. It must be rather difficult in those temps for you and them. Happy Birthyesterday to Peggy. Enjoy your time in Florida — will it be cooler?!

    Reply

    • The temps are obnoxious, AC, although they have dropped a bit now, more like a hundred F. And the animals are suffering. We can stay in our air conditioned home. Thanks on the birthday wish. As for Florida, a hurricane is threatening to is Tampa right now, which is where we are supposed to fly in on Thursday. We’ll see… And yes it is cooler but Florida gets the high humidity! –Curt

      Reply

  6. First of all, Happy Birthday to Peggy, wishing her health and joy!!
    A lovely post, Curt, such a wonderful gang you’re having there. You made me laugh so much with the fake flowers, I was just trying to identify what are those eye-catching flowers LOL
    Enjoy your time in Florida!!
    Christie

    Reply

    • Thanks, Christie. Peggy was quite happy with her Birthday. I always spoil her.
      And I’m glad you enjoyed the post. I had fun putting it together, including the ‘flowers.’
      Now the next challenge is how the Hurricane will impact out Florida trip. Never dull. 🙂 –Curt

      Reply

  8. What’s a little amusing is that mid-coast Texas had more rain and flooding than the west coast of Florida. I’ve not seen it mentioned in national media, though. It’s an old issue. During Katrina, NOLA got the publicity, and Mississippi was mostly ignored, etc. etc. But that’s a local grump, and it certainly fades away when looking at a collection of photos as wonderful as these. I must say, I’ve never heard of anyone relocating ground squirrels before. That made me laugh. Of course, I was ready myself to relocate the young squirrels who took to sitting on top of my prize cactus. How squirrely is that? It’s not an issue any more, though. Someone stole the cactus. There will be a post.

    Reply

    • We certainly could have used some of your flooding, Linda! Fires are already raging through the West. We are in Florida now where we just missed the hurricane/tropical storm that targeted Tampa. There have been thunderstorms each afternoon. One interrupted a fun kayak trip though a mangrove swamp. We got out before it hit.
      Yeah, the neighbors just shoot them. They don’t know how lucky they are to live on our property. 🙂 I’m a little suspicious that things that like to eat ground squirrels consider the sound of our truck a dinner bell, however.
      Somebody stole your cactus? Ouch. Lets hope that the thorns stick them. –Curt

      Reply

    • So true, Bill. We are lucky that our minimal garden and flowers are relatively well protected or are things that the deer don’t like to eat. How are things out your way? Are you still farming and selling your produce at farmer’s markets? It was good to hear from you. –Curt

      Reply

  11. Oh what joy to see all those deer and fawns cooling off at your place. And 86 squirrels? Lol. They are a noisy lot. Thanks for the beautiful photos. The fake flowers sound like a great idea – I should try it. Happy belated birthday to Peggy and have a lovely trip to FL.

    Reply

    • Thanks, D. We think of the deer as providing endless entertainment, as long as they stay out of our garden and keep their ticks to themselves. 🙂 As for ground squirrels, between the fox and I, plus an occasional hawk and coyote, their population explosion seems contained. I was hoping for a hundred, however. 🙂 I always wish them good luck in their new home. Thanks on the birthday. The trip to Florida was great. –Curt

      Reply

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