Mule Deer Does and Fawns

Lady with twins that I encounter on a daily basis

Nesting fawn

Fawn and Mom reunited this morning

Mule deer mother and child

It's a push-me-pull-you!  A pair of fawns; photo by Worth1000.com

Warm, Warm, Warm!

Lovey is laying between my chest and the keyboard, so I'm having to reach over and/or around her to type.  I could make her move, but I'd rather be close and uncomfortable than chase her away.  Besides my kits, and Rosie, Courtney the goldfish, and the bunnies Chocolate and Blackberry, I add Sasquatch and Tugger to the mix today.  Luckily, Rosie's people and Paulina will both be back tomorrow evening, so I'll be back at home, with twice a day runs to the Redwood brothers (Tugger and Sasquatch).   Next Saturday and Sunday morning, I'm free and clear - then I add Tugger and Sasquatch (again), Maggie May and then Tinkerbell, while watering flowers for another client from now until July 4...
   I wouldn't say that we are having a problem with mother deer here in Boulder, but some folks would.  A young mother, who has an injured hind leg has a new set of twins, whom she usually leaves in a yard on Agate Road.  It's a high traffic area for people who walk, jog, run, and ride bicycles.  It's also a high traffic area for people who walk dogs.  This young mother is very protective of her babies - she will make a stand to keep them safe.  The other day, she attacked a dog (on a leash) who got too close - the lady, who had been talking on her cell phone and not looking around for wildlife, dropped the leash, and the dog ran for the doe.  The doe knocked it over and walked on it, which terrified the owner.  The owner of the house went out and frightened the deer away.  The dog and the woman were unhurt.  But this has caused an uproar in the neighborhood...  and I am not happy with the folks who ignore the law and allow their dogs to roam loose, either.  I am firmly on the side of the deer.  I believe that the woman was at fault for not really taking in/seeing her surroundings...
   Wildfires in Colorado continue to pop up, thanks to lightning, sparks from train wheels on tracks, and idiotic people.Yes, we had snow in April and May, and ran in May.  However, we are still in an extreme drought condition.  The Black Forest wildfire, while contained, has now had the homes destroyed count upped to 511.  The West Fork Complex fire (which has three fires - West Fork, Papoose, and Windy Pass) has now burned over 40,000 acres (or 62.5 square miles) and is still not contained in any way.  The East Peak fire has burned 10,000 acres and 9 homes, and has no containment. The Wild Rose fire, near Rangely, is at 850 acres and is 10% contained. The Lime Gulch fire is up to 600 acres and is 15% contained.  The Rife Gap fire has 0 containment and is estimated at 300 acres. The Bull Gulch fire, northeast of Cotopaxi, is 30% contained.  The Disappointment wildfire has been extinguished.  The Wild-Hacking Complex fire is 15% contained.  The Collins fire, 17 miles southwest of Meeker is uncontained, as are the two fires in northern Eagle County, The Derby Creek and the Brush Creek fires....  With high temperatures, no rain, and winds expected for the next week, I'll just cross my fingers, as usual.

Black-Eyed Susan Scratch; Back Yard Wildlife

Walkwithapurpose, the only Maryland-bred filly in the Black-Eyed Susan Stakes today, has been scratched due to a bruised foot.  So the quest for the second jewel in the Triple Tiara will be contested by 8 fillies at Pimlico this afternoon.  -  And I'm sticking with the choices I made yesterday in the blog.
  I'm spending much of my time at Alexy's - previously, I was able to take Lovey and Nedi over there with me when I was house-sitting, but Cloudy has gotten worse at sharing "her" space, so my kits are back at home.  (After all, it is Cloudy and Shady's house.)  The front yard of the house is rather shallow, but has a rock garden with roses and several trees; the back yard is comprised of a full acre - mostly grass, but with several small treed areas, another rock garden, the tool shed, the pump house for the irrigation ditch, and several bird baths.  And the back yard is full of wildlife.  Birds, squirrels, mule deer, fox, raccoons, coyote, black bear and mountain lions are frequent visitors.  You never know what you'll see when you look out the rear windows.
  This morning, as I was scrambling eggs, movement caught my eye, and I watched two herds of mule deer bound across the back yard.  With four feet of snow falling in April, and a foot on May first, the deer have only now begun to shed their winter coats - and, honestly, they look awful.  Yellowish long hair sticking out in tufts - like mohawk haircuts running wild all over their bodies.  It's quite a sight!  And yesterday evening, I went out and called for Shady and Cloudy to come in for the night - Shady came trotting in, but I had to look for Cloudy.  She was in one of her moods, and did not want to come inside, did not want to be touched (she shredded my right index finger), and would not be coerced.  I gave up, and 15 minutes she walked in, like it was her own idea...  Anyway, when I was looking for her, I was wandering around the back yard, and I'm sure if someone was looking at me from a distance, they would have sworn I was drunk, because I was weaving around so much - avoiding certain areas and crisscrossing others multiple times.  The reason I walked in such an odd pattern was because there were 6 adult deer and 5 fawns bedded down in the yard...  I had no problem approaching the adult deer - they all know me, and just continued to chew their cud, after sniffing me - but I tried to avoid the newborns ....
  Spring - I love the flowers, the new growth of trees and bushes, and all the adorable baby critters!