Please fence me in

Today's the day (5:30pm) that CKWS Kingston will air the segment shot yesterday at the reserve. Don and Wendy did a great job as did George, EGee and the rest of the boys who came in on cue to Allan and Bruce and stayed for the entire 30 minutes. Anthony Agostino was able to feed both George and EGee and this was caught on camera, too.

We are happy to report that we have secured land (15+ acres) in the Odessa area for the bucks' permanent home for the next 15+ years! Now our need is to fence the new reserve which will keep the herd safe, protected from predators. This means 8 foot deer fencing which has smaller squares at the bottom and larger at the top. It also means over 300 steel fence posts (10 feet). If you have the fencing or the posts, new or used, we want to make a deal with you! Please call Don Murphy at 613-386-1355 .

If you want to volunteer your time to work with the deer (socializing and feeding), please call Allan Park at 613-386-3673.

2007 Calendars are ready!

We just created some 2007 desk calendars with a different deer named photo for each month and George on the cover as you can see above. They measure 8 inches by 4 inches and are in full colour.

If you make a donation of $25 or more, we will rush your calendar to you by return mail. Please order before December 15, 2006 if you want one for Christmas. Send cheque payable to "Fallow Deer Reserve" and mention the calendar: c/o Jane McDonald, 204 Simmons Road, RR2, Odessa ON K0H 2H0.

Giving Ideas

Some of you have asked how you can help the reserve.

Your knowledge, thoughts and suggestions are always welcome. You can add your comments in this blog by clicking on the "Comments" box at the bottom of any entry and that message is automatically forwarded to us.

Apple, carrot or hay bale donations are needed as well as any expertise you may have such as fence building, fundraising, etc.

You may wish to consider making a financial contribution:

Buck: For a donation of $100 or more, you become the official sponsor of one of our boys, whichever one you wish. You will receive a certificate of sponsorship along with a photo of the buck you have "adopted". We can also arrange a visit to meet your buck in person and send you updates and photos via email of how your dear deer is doing. A grandmother has sponsored a buck for her grand-daughter. We were able to introduce him to the child and include a photo of their meeting on the certificate of sponsorship. While quantities last, such a gift also includes a hat, t-shirt or pen. This makes for an unusual and welcome gift on birthdays, Christmas, anniversaries or any special day.

Spiker: For a donation of $50, you become an official friend and receive a visit to the reserve to meet your buck as well as regular email updates and photos.

Fawn: Any donation will give your family an invitation to visit the reserve by appointment and meet each of our bucks.


Here's some examples of what your dollars could provide:

$156 will feed each buck for one year
$100 will purchase 10 bags of corn, 50 bales of hay, 30 feet of fencing, one visit from the vet
$50 will provide shelter maintenance for six months
$45 will provide vitamin and mineral supplement lick for one year
$15 will feed each buck for one month with a good diet of hay, corn, apples and carrots

To make a financial gift, go to www.fallowdeerreserve.com

Thanks to the Work Crew

A big thanks to everyone who came out to help "winterize" the reserve on Saturday. Under Don's excellent guidance and hammer, a large roofed area was completed just outside the grey barn with help from David and Jason. Paul built a new door which will allow the bravest of deer to enter the barn on the coldest most wintery days and find comfort and dry straw.

Deb, Wendy and Kelly spent time repairing the fences and putting out fresh hay for our boys. Allan and Jane helped bring in the deer so that some of the crew could take a break and a closer look at the herd, watching them enjoy a corn nosh.

Your official blogger had to leave at 12 noon so apologies to others who came after and have not received credit. Wendy's brother, David, took some great pictures which you can access at by clicking on his link.

A picture is worth ...

Isn't he a Dandy!

Our Dandy is one of the biggest and calmest of the fallow deer bucks. He joins Max, Mike and Gulliver in the group we think as eldest and in their prime. He is likely to come quite close to feeders, but not to eat from our hands. During September and October he has been comfortable with our presence, and often will lie down by a fence five or six feet away watching us and other deer. His appetite for food has been almost nil, but is starting to increase as the weather cools.

Bruce meets the boys

Yesterday we introduced Bruce Burt (who turned 90 on October 17) to our bucks. George and EG turned on the charm and Bruce experienced their gentleness and enthusiasm for corn.

To date, Bruce holds the record for the eldest deerkeeper. Our photos show EG on the left and George on the right.

Mighty Mike

This photo shows Mike in his full glory in October 2006. You might want to compare it with the photo we took of him in August when his velvet had just come off. Check out "Mike's losing it" in the blog's August archive.

The rut is almost over as the colder weather has arrived. Winter coats are starting to spread from the neck to the shoulders to trunk. Appetites have returned and the deer are, once again, social with human feeders. Soon it will be time to start feeding hay. We have lots of water and Don is building a bigger shelter close to the grey barn so the herd can find protection from wind and/or rain.

Deerkeeper Allan recently checked the fence line for holes and was assisted by George who followed him from post to post.

The Deer King

Long ago in a forgotten forest, lived a deer named Banyan. He was golden like the sun and his horns glistened like silver. His body was as large as a colt and his eyes sparkled like jewels-alight with wisdom. He was a King of Deer and watched over a herd of 500 deer.

Not far away, another herd of deer was watched over by another golden deer named Branch. In the tall grass and shadows of the deep forest, the two herds lived in peace.


One day, the King of Benares was out on a hunt and spied the beautiful green forest where the deer lived. "What a perfect hunting ground!" he declared and into the forests he dashed with his thousands of hunters and came upon the two herds of deer. Without a moment's hesitation, he notched an arrow in his bow. Suddenly he spotted the two golden deer. Never had he seen such beautiful creatures! "From this day on," he commanded, "No one is to harm or kill these golden deer."

Thereafter, he came to the forest everyday and killed more deer than was needed for his dinner table. As the weeks went by, many deer were wounded and died in great pain.

Finally Banyan Deer called the two herds together, "Friends, we know there is no escape from death, but this needless killing can be prevented. Let the deer take turns going to the chopping block, one day from my herd and the next day from Branch's herd."

All the deer agreed. Each day the deer whose turn it was went to the chopping block on the edge of the forest and laid its head upon the block.

One day, the turn fell to a pregnant doe from Branch's herd. She went to Branch Deer and begged, "Grant that I be passed over until after my fawn is born. Then I will gladly take my turn." Branch Deer replied, "It is your turn. You must go."

In despair, the poor doe went to Banyan Deer and explained her plight. He gently said, "Go rest in peace. I will put your turn upon another." The deer king went and laid his golden head upon the chopping block. A deep silence fell in the forest.

When the king of Benares came and saw the golden deer ready for sacrifice, his heart skipped a beat, "You are the leader of the herd," he exclaimed, "You should be the last to die!" Banyan Deer explained how he had come to save the life of the doe.
A tear rolled down the cheek of the king. "Golden Deer King," he exclaimed. "Among men and beasts, I have not seen one with such compassion. Arise! I spare both your life and hers. "

"So we will be safe. But what shall the rest of the deer do?" "Their lives I shall also spare." "So the deer will be safe, but what will the other four-footed animals do?" "From now on they too will be safe." "And what of the birds?" "I will spare their lives." "And the fish in the water" "The fish shall be spared- all creatures of the land, sea, and sky will be free."

Having saved the lives of all creatures, the golden deer raised his head from the chopping block and returned to the forest.

A Buddhist tale found on the web at

http://online.sfsu.edu/~rone/Buddhism/footsteps.htm

Max is ready to rut

Max is our leader without doubt. Here's a picture of him taken yesterday in full rut mode...darkened face, snout and neck, thick and full neck, large Adam's apple, coarser hair on the neck and shoulder flanks. He reeks of urine, too. Every other deer in our herd moves out of his way even if he only twitches.

But so far, the bucks are behaving well. There are occasional experimental attempts to lock antlers, but generally they are in an almost trance-like state. They often stretch their heads back and open their mouths as if suffering from swollen glands or sore throats. They make low, moaning sounds, nothing loud yet.

Appetites have shrunk radically. Even George, who has never failed to eat corn to the very last kernel, took his time to come in for food yesterday and then walked away from it to lie down and rest. Only the two little ones (Moki and Spike) will eat apples and corn continously. No one is interested in carrots anymore.

Anniversary Wish

October 1, 2006 marks the first anniversary of the Odessa Fallow Deer Reserve. Happy Anniversary.

Last October 1st, Don Murphy was driving home from work and saw hunters shooting bucks in the farmer's field where normally he would have seen the deer grazing in peace. Over 100 other deer were racing back and forth in terror as the bullets flew. He saw bodies lying in the field and men loading fallen deer into a frontend loader.

Horrified, he went home and talked to Wendy, his wife. Together they decided to approach the farmer. They purchased the deer and made an agreement that included use of the farmer's land for two years (until October 2007). In this way perhaps a better way of dealing with too many deer in too small a space could be found and over 100 lives were saved. Long story short, in April 2006, the entire herd was tested for disease, treated for worms and 89 does and fawns were able to be transferred by transport truck to Parc Omega in Montebello, Quebec.

Left on the reserve are 13 bucks who were not wanted by Parc Omega. We are searching for at least 10 or 15 acres of land with trees and water to lease for approximately 10 years so that these 13 bucks can live out their lives as safely and peacefully as possible. They can't be released into the wild because they are not native to Canada and must be fed hay throughout the winter.

Our dedicated group of volunteers could help provide and build the 7 to 8 foot fencing required as our bucks will jump when frightened. We receive many donations of hay, apples and carrots as well as veterinary advice and that could transfer to a new location. If you have land that is currently unused and would like to become involved in our reserve, please call one of the numbers above.

This October 1 is a good time to thank all those who have helped in the past year in so many ways.

The above photo was taken in late August 2006 by Jane McDonald ... "The bums' rush".

Bash(ful)

Bash(ful) earned his name due to his behaviour early on. He looks like Buddy but we could always tell which was which because Bash would be miles away from us, skirting the edges of the herd. He rarely even looked in our direction.

This picture taken yesterday shows him in his prime. If you look closely, you'll see that his "maleness" has distended, his neck is thick and dark, his Adam's apple is huge. We've also noticed the slight curl up at the tip of his tail. He is a handsome deer fully prepared for the rut. We haven't got the heart to tell him ...

Shy Ty

Ty is one of our shyest deer, so he makes it difficult to get a good picture. He hangs out on the fringes of the herd at feeding time and gets shoved by both smaller and larger bucks so we guess his place in the hierarchy is quite low.

Although mid-size, he has more compact body than George or EG. His is much like Koko's. His coat has more of a reddish tone than the other deer. His antlers and his coat are almost the same colour. The horizontal white line marking that runs from his hips is broken just before it reaches his shoulders.

Buddy's Bio

Buddy got his name because back in May he was constantly at George's side and that's how we could identify him. He had then and still has more white than George on his legs and lower body.

Sometime in June as each deer began to grow in size, Buddy became more shy of people and less likely to hang out with us, or with George who took up with EG.

We think he is one of the most handsome looking deer. His antlers are symmetrical and at the inside corner of his expressive eyes, he has white teardrops.

As antlers have hardened and the herd has spread itself out on the reserve, Buddy is getting to know us again and coming in close for photos.

Top photo: Buddy behind George in May 2006.

Bottom photo: Buddy enjoying an apple, September 2006.

Rut 101

As each day passes since velvet has shed and antlers have hardened, the bucks become more skittish and twitchy. They are challenging one another and constantly on alert -- even while feeding.There is considerably more pushing and shoving and all bucks seem to snort frequently.

George has some minor scratch marks along his right side. Murph has an ever-darkening snout. We noticed that the colour along the back of their necks is becoming darker, too and the necks are becoming thicker.

The largest bucks are not even coming to see us for food. We occasionally walk down to the end of the field to count them and leave some goodies, but they really don't want much to do with us.

That leaves 8 or 9 bucks for apples, carrots and corn and our "socialization" efforts. They come in from different areas of the farm. Today they came from three places. And if, while feeding, one gets spooked, then all will run off, leaving food that only a few weeks ago they would eat to the very last kernel and then casually stroll across the creek to lay down for a nap.

We think this change in behaviour marks the beginning of the rut or mating season, or some prelude to it. Apparently this starts to happen in October, but ...

Because some of the deer movements can be jerky, sudden and not very calm, it's probably not the best time for too many visitors, especially children. We now understand that the deer were the most placid and pleasant during the velvet stage from May to mid-August. What next?

Velvet vanishing

Happy to report that almost all the deer have shed their velvet and are starting to calm down now that they don't have long strands covering their eyes or face.

George was one of the last to lose his velvet layer, and we must have been observing him very shortly after the process began because the blood was still visible, as you can see from this picture.

Mike is starting to lose it

Mike is one of the four largest deer and the first to begin shedding the velvet from his antlers in such a big way. We thought the velvet might just rub off in small pieces but you can see the long strands to the right of his face and on his forehead.

Yesterday he was a bit annoyed with the dangling old velvet and lowering his head trying to shake off the unwanted strands . The other deer thought he was challenging them whenever he lowered his antlers, so they were on edge, too trying hard to keep out of his way.

In the herd hierarchy, it appears that Mike is second to Max in command in most situations. He can be aggressive and can intimidate other deer, even when he isn't shedding his velvet.

We named him Mike because we like deer names that begin with the letter M and because it's Allan's middle name.

Humane Education

Here's a great example of mutual trust and respect. We can't think of any two better ambassadors for human and deer beings.

Thanks to a generous donation from her grandmother, Marg, this young person has become the official sponsor of the fallow deer (Curious) George, pictured with her above.

Mischief and Moki

Moki is one of two smallest deer with more brown colouring on his mid belly than Spike. Of the two, Moki was most fearful of humans, weather, loud noises and such when we first started observing the herd.

As we speak and as his antlers continue to develop, Moki is emerging from his shell and is now coming closer and closer to people, unafraid and determined to get his share of all food offered.

He looks like a small version of Gulliver with white legs and chest and has a similar temperament: unpredictable. Sometimes he spaces out and fails to notice food at his feet. Sometimes he chases other deer or tries to mount them which is surprising to watch because of his small size and low status in the herd.

He got his name from the native American (Hopi) word for deer.

Meet Murph

Murph is a mid-sized deer about the same size and age as George. He has a dark patch on his forehead just below his antlers and a narrow head. He is slim and strong.

He is interested in people and he has no problem making direct eye contact, but he keeps a safe distance away from us. Sometimes he hangs out with Max and Mike (two of the leaders) away from the herd. He showed some aggression towards other deer in the spring, but lately he stands his ground only when challenged and won't be spooked easily. In the herd hierarchy, he seems to be in the middle and okay with his place.

We named him to honour Don, his Dad and the Murphy spirit.

Antler Development

We found a very useful article about antlers on the net:

The fully developed antlers of Fallow are easily distinguished from the antlers of other deer species as they are palmated or flattened in comparison to those of other deer species such as Red and Sika which end in points. The palmation is usually fringed with a series of mini points and these are called spellers. Proceeding up the antler from the coronet the first point or tine is called the brow, the second is called the trey and then comes the flattened palmation. There is no bey tine on a Fallow antler as there is on a standard Red antler.

Fallow adhere to an annual cycle of antler shedding and regrowth. The bucks grow their antlers over the spring and summer when food is readily available to provide the required nutrients for antler development.



The pedicles, from which the antlers grow, are not present when Fallow are born making the skulls of fawns of both sexes identical. The pedicles start to develop in young bucks during the winter, at about 6 - 7 months of age, but are so small that they are not clearly visible.

By March the pedicles are well developed enough to be easily spotted and they continue to grow throughout the spring. Antlers continue to grow until fully formed from about the end of July to mid August. At this time the covering of velvet dries off and is shed over the next week or so.

The first pair of antlers grown consists of simple unbranched spikes which can vary from 1-20 cm in length. The antler has a club shape, being thicker at the base where it forms an irregular, pearled coronet. This may be up to 5cm in diameter and can progress up the length of the antler. This first set of antlers or head gives rise to the yearling bucks being called ‘prickets’.

The first head is retained until the following summer when it is cast, with the new antlers starting to grow almost immediately and taking 12-17 weeks to develop fully into hard antler, depending upon the age and condition of the animal. The better the condition of the buck, the bigger the antlers will be and hence the longer they take to develop fully. It is the older bucks which cast their antlers first although, by the end of the period of antler renewal, all bucks will be clean of velvet at approximately the same time.

As a buck gets older the antlers become larger and more palmated until the animal reaches its prime. Once past its prime the antlers start to deteriorate in size and weight, termed ‘going back’. Any buck which develops a particularly good head is referred to as being in its prime, irrespective of age.

The above photo was taken of Dandy on August 13, 2006 and you can see he still has velvet on his huge, beautiful set of antlers of which he is very proud ... Dandy's dandies.

Deerkeeper Allan with George

This photo gives you a good idea of how large George's antlers are. It was taken on August 11, 2006 and George is eating his favourite, corn.

EeGee (formerly known as Scratch)

When we first began to observe the bucks regularly after the fawns and does had left our reserve, we had trouble telling two similar deer apart. Both were the same size and they were often together doing the same things. George had a noticeable spot above his right eye and the other deer had a scratch above his, hence he received the name Scratch. The mark has long since disappeared, and we have had a chance to get to know more about him. He is a very kind deer who does not bully any others ever. We think he is probably the most gentle and calm of the herd, so we decided to rename him, EG for easy-going. He takes food from hand and is starting to nudge feeders whenever he wants more than his share.

His antlers are continuing to grow. He has a odd vertical spur only on his left antler which you can barely see in the picture above which was taken in August.

KoKo:Looking like a million

KoKo is easy to identify because he has the darkest colouring in the face, body and antlers. In size, he has a slightly shorter and more compact truck and smaller head than George.

When the Reserve bought the herd in October 2005, KoKo was not in good health. He had a large abscess on his left hip. The farmer (on whose land the reserve is currently situated) thought it best to shoot him, which we are happy to say Wendy and Don did not do. The abscess decreased on its own and is now just a small scar. Thanks to improved nutrition, summer and love, KoKo is looking like a million bucks!

He has always been skittish and jumpy but lately has calmed down considerably. We thought he was one of the oldest deer, especially when he was looking so poorly. But now that he has regained his health, we are not too sure whether he is on his way to or from his prime.

The top picture was taken in June 2006. The side pic was taken on August 1, 2006. The antlers continue to grow and branch out.

Gulliver's Travels

Gulliver is a large deer with huge antlers and whitish colouring on the underbelly and legs. He has an expressive face with white circles around each eye and white "teardrops". His brow tines are quite straight without curves and lately he has developed a patch of black fur between his eyes.

During testing of the entire 100+ herd in April, Gulliver decided that farm life was not for him. He had demonstrated his jumping skills by clearing an inside fence (at least 10 feet high) and presumably discovered how to jump the outside fence. For several weeks he roamed the fields adjacent to the deer farm enclosure and eluded all efforts to encourage him to come back. Hence, his name, Gulliver. On June 1, 2006 he was reunited with his buck buddies following a late night manoever involving Don, Wendy, corn, a light and a truck. For awhile, he was not happy being "home" and blamed all humans for this.

With daily feedings of apples, carrots or corn, he has settled into reserve life and he is now very social, yet still somewhat complex and unpredictable. He sometimes goes off "in a huff" but no other deer follows him. During feeding, he will sometimes be bullied by other deer and, in return, he bullies the two small deer, Spike and Moki, but not too seriously.

(Super) Max

Max is a large, solid deer with huge antlers. He leads the herd most of the time but always with firm gentleness. He never bullies or abuses the power of his size. He'll defer to smaller deer if both arrive at an apple or carrot at the same time. He just is. He teaches us.

He has beautiful eyes that seem almost sleepy, but wise and kind.

We think he may be George's father because their face structures are alike. He also likes to eat, preferring apples and carrots to corn. He comes quite close to feeders and likes to stand at the highest point of land and look majestic.

On the left is Max today. On the right, Max in June 2006 when his antlers were in the velvet soft stage. Now they have grown considerably and are starting to harden and turn white.

The Skinny on Spike

Let us introduce you to Spike. The top photo was taken in July and this one was taken in June 2006.


We named Spike because in April he had tiny antlers which were not much bigger than chopsticks. He missed being labelled a "fawn" and going to Omega Park because of these two spikes indicating his male status. Omega Park wanted only does and fawns for a trail area in their reserve where guests can walk three kilometres through a beautiful Laurentian Shield landscape and catch sight of our 89 Odessa deer (plus at least 4 new fawns)who have made themselves at home.

His small antlers shed in May as did those of all the bucks and you can see from the pictures in June and July how much his antlers have grown. Here's the lastest picture of his antlers in August:



Spike's got a lot of personality for such a small, young deer. He is genuinely interested in people and likes to watch them. He doesn't come too close to feeders yet but he enjoys all the food that comes his way: corn, apples and carrots (in that order).

We think Spike is likely to become one of our most social deer. Everyday he gets a little bolder and communicates a little more.

All About George

George is the most social deer in our herd, hence his name from Curious George. At first he was a bit cautious about humans, but now he has no trouble taking apples from your hand, your lap or licking your hand. He often nudges feeders to ensure he gets his share. He loves to eat. He is a mid-sized buck, we guess about 3 or 4 years old.

The herd has a hierarchial setup and his status seems to be quite high. One of his constant companions is EG (formerly known as Scratch) a deer of similar size and age. Sometimes they engage in Laurel and Hardy humour routines...George as Ollie and Scratch as Stan.

The top photo was taken in March 2006 of George and Allan Park, feeder. The other photo was taken in July. George is always eating!

General Observations

There are 13 male fallow deer in our current herd who are are conditioned to come to people when they hear the banging of a metal pail. Around 3pm they seem to congregate under one of the shade trees in G, not far from the red barn door where we always enter as if anticipating our arrival, unless there has been some event to scare them such as high wind, loud party, braying donkey, etc.

Each deer loves corn. Some prefer apples to carrots but will eat carrots if cut in quite small pieces. We spread corn over a large area, not in a straight line, so that each one can get some, even those who don’t like to come too close to people.

We have had some success spreading out the corn along the dry creek bedrock and in a circle around the rocks to the left of the red barn. We sit quietly on rocks in the middle of the circle. The deer will come quite close from all directions. George eats out of our hands and Scratch will eat from the rocks quite close to us.

We have been rewarding the deer with apples or carrots when they come close to us or make eye contact and “ask” for food. At first they were skittish when we tossed the food to their feet, but most now are not frightened by our underhand throws. Occasionally we hit one with a piece of apple or carrot but some are not worried by that. When nervous most deer will run a short distance away and then walk back to the feeding area.


The deer are still very sensitive to any quick movements by people and different noises such as clicking of a camera or a truck backing up. If we quietly speak in reassuring tones, “It’s okay, okay” they often calm down and return to feeding. George is now not spooked by the sound of our voices or our laughter.

Although there is a bit of shoving going on when feeding, the bucks are not being too aggressive with one another and seem to be getting along. Occasionally George will nip Scratch on the shoulder or rump and some of the others have done this to each other too. Two bucks will rear up onto their hind legs and shove each other. It seems to be over when the one who is pushed back onto four legs first moves away.

****

Identifying the Deer by Groups & Behaviour at Feeding Time

The herd numbers 13 and we have decided to divide the group into different sections which makes it easier to identify individual deer and groups. Each of the individuals now has a name.

Group One – Largest – 3 individuals
(Super) Max, very social, leads deer away after he decides feeding ends.
Mike, somewhat social
Dandy, somewhat social

Group Two – White & Large – 3 individuals
Buddy, somewhat social
Bash, somewhat shy
Gulliver, social but unpredictable

Group Three – Brown, Mid-size – 4 individuals
George, very social, sometimes leader
Scratch, very social
Murph, somewhat social
Ty, somewhat shy

Group Four – Small, white – 2 individuals
Spike, somewhat social
Moki, somewhat shy

Group Five – dark, adult, eldest? – 1 individual
Koko, social but easily spooked


Group One – LARGEST

1. (Super) Max
Seems to be the tallest and has most body weight, largest antler growth
Comfortable around people, and will come close for apples and carrots
Not challenged for food by the others and does his own thing.
One of three largest deer with largest antlers and similar colouring
Usually leads group from one area to another after feeding is over
Large antlers are symmetrical, front antlers form an open, even U shape

2. Mike
Very large deer similar in size and colouring to Max
Hangs out with Max, a bit less courageous
Has non-symmetrical antlers, an odd lump/spike on one antler (left)
Front antlers come quite close together

3. Dandy
Very large deer similar in size and colouring to Max
Least social of three large deer
Front antlers asymmetrical

Group Two -- WHITEST

1. Buddy
About the same size as George, slightly darker face
White legs and undercarriage, pale antlers
Obvious white horizontal stripe halfway across from hips to shoulders
Was social earlier in spring but has become more tentative and shy

2. Bash(ful)
Whitish face with dark eyes, whitish body and legs
Large pale antlers with pinkish tones
Stays as far away from people as he can and still get to any corn.
Starting to look at feeders

3. Gulliver (returned June 1, 2006)
White legs similar to Buddy in colouring
Antlers have a whitish fur, one of the largest deer
Wanderlust, distrustful of people at first, now social but unpredictable

Group Three – MID SIZE

1. (Curious) George
George has a black spot on his right eyelid above the outside top corner of his eye.
His antlers are dark.
His grey tag is about 2/3 way between his head and the tip of his left ear, closer to the tip (No. 96073T7).
He is usually the first to approach people and comes the closest
He accepts apple and corn from hand and lets you touch his antlers and nose
He seems to be the leader of the younger bucks.
He will follow a feeder who walks away from him

2. Scratch
Looks almost the same as George
Quite social and almost takes corn from hand
Dark antlers with an odd lump on his left antler only

3. Murph
Looks similar to George in size and colouring
Darkest hair on forehead

4. Ty
Tawny colouring in face and antlers
Shyest but starting to look at feeders


Group Four – SMALLEST

1. Spike
Most social of the smaller bucks
Lighter colouring than Moki, white belly bleeds into chestnut top
Makes eye contact when he wants an apple, prefers corn
Likes to watch people

2. Moki (native American for “deer”)
He is about the same size as Spike
His coat is slightly darker than Spike’s, chestnut colouring below his horizontal belly line
Does not often make eye contact with humans
Doesn’t like apples too much, prefers corn
Sometimes spaces out

Group Five – DARKEST

1. KoKo
Darkest brown face and neck
Body dark brown, too
Getting comfortable with people, loves apples
Smaller trunk and shorter than the largest deer
Social but easily spooked.

Allan Park
Jane McDonald
July 14, 2006