Here's one of the does, waiting for grain last Sunday morning. A few years ago we had an unusually long cold spell with snow on the ground so for several weeks we had more deer in our yard than usual. One of the deer families consisted of a mama doe, her sister or oldest daughter, and the mama doe's teenagers -- a doe and a buck.
The three does were placid and friendly but we nicknamed the buck "Brat Boy" in honor of his rambunctious behavior - swatting his sister with his hooves, dumping the food bowl over, galloping around in circles, and generally making a nuisance of himself. Eventually the snow melted and the little family wandered off to their summer abode.
The following autumn, I came home from work one evening at twilight, pulled into the driveway, got out of the car, and turned my back to the front of the house while I got packages out of the car. I heard a snort behind me, turned around, and in the dim light saw the shapes of six or seven deer standing together on the lawn. As my eyes focused, I realized that the snort had come from the largest and most beautiful of the deer -- a deer who was standing about six feet behind me and who had elegant antlers. The large deer was Brat Boy, come back for one more visit, politely asking for grain for his harem. It was wonderful to see him again, all grown up and full of dignity.
Today's front yard critter count:
Raccoons: 0
Deer: 0
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