Found a baby deer

Tea drinker

As per the title, I found a Fawn beside logh Dan while out walking yesterday. It was lying right by the water, actually partly in the water. I got very close and could see here breathing and ears move, so she was definately alive.

Is it normal for a fawn to be left like that by the water? And how long would the mother leave her like that? I guess she comes back at dusk when the walkers are gone from the area...

BryanL

the normal defence for a fawn is to lie as still as possible when anything is near.possibly it was close to the water when it heard you.
you did well to leave it as it was and not getting too much of your scent on the fawn or in the area ,as that would discourage the mother from returning.
Bryan

Talliesin

Dunno about age, but you need a specific license for hunting deer in Ireland, and the season varies from year to year and tends to start mid-autumn for hunting males and late autumn/early winter for females.

Land owners can apply for special licenses outside of season if they've got problems with deer (I don't think "but they look so delicious" would count as a deer problem, true as it is).

stevoman

Tea drinker wrote: »

As per the title, I found a Fawn beside logh Dan while out walking yesterday. It was lying right by the water, actually partly in the water. I got very close and could see here breathing and ears move, so she was definately alive.

Is it normal for a fawn to be left like that by the water? And how long would the mother leave her like that? I guess she comes back at dusk when the walkers are gone from the area...

keep an eye on it. the doe could have died. i know of two fawns near me that the mother had died, the does died during shooting season. One fawn was suckled by cattle and now lives in the field with them thinking its a calf.
the other was taken by a farmer and fed with a bottle. now everywhere he goes the deer jumps in the back of the jeep with him!

Tea drinker

stevoman wrote: »

keep an eye on it. the doe could have died. i know of two fawns near me that the mother had died, the does died during shooting season. One fawn was suckled by cattle and now lives in the field with them thinking its a calf.
the other was taken by a farmer and fed with a bottle. now everywhere he goes the deer jumps in the back of the jeep with him!

Interesting stories! It is funny to see animals interact like that.

We used to have goats and sometimes they would forget where they left the kids, it was quite a job to find them for the mammy.
I guessed that a wild animal might have better instincts here than domestic one.
I dunno if I can get back to lough Dan - it's a bit out of the way for me

ytpe2r5bxkn0c1

It is quite normal for Deer to leave fawns for hours during the day. The fawn lies still during that time. Leave it alone as it is almost certainly in no danger and you may cause it, or the Doe, distress by approaching to near.