— from Shona Aitken, Wolf Hollow —
This is the time of year when fawns are being born on the San Juans. For the first couple of weeks they are not strong enough to run, jump and follow Mom through the woods, so she leaves them alone, lying still and quiet, for several hours while she goes off to feed. Ideally they are in a safe, sheltered spot in the woods, but sometimes they are left in strange places such as in a garden, next to a building or trail, or in a pasture where they are noticed by people.
If you do find a fawn please don’t disturb or touch it. Please stay back, keep dogs and small children away and leave Mom to come back and feed her baby later.
If you see a doe and small fawn crossing the road, please stay well back and give the little creature time to pick its way across the hard surface on its tiny hooves. If they are startled, the doe will probably run off and the fawn will immediately crouch down in the road and lie very still. If this happens, you can very carefully slip your hand under the fawn’s belly, carry it off the road and leave it in a safe sheltered spot nearby. Mom will most likely return for her baby when she thinks it is safe.
If you think a fawn is injured or in need of help, give us a call at Wolf Hollow-378 5000. We will be glad to talk with you and help work out if the fawn needs care or is just waiting for its mother. We can care for injured or orphaned fawns but don’t want to “kidnap” a perfectly healthy youngster.
Thanks for the advice. As I drove out onto our gravel road 3 days ago, there was what looked like a small bundle of clothing or garbage in the middle of our one lane dirt “road” … suddenly it wobbled knock-kneed to its feet, I slammed to a stop, and this tiny, tiny newborn fawn staggered off into the woods. I assumed it had recently been born and abandoned, but I asked around and was given the advice to LEAVE IT ALONE. So thanks for corroborating the info I received. It really was upsetting to leave such a defenseless baby, but now I know that it was the right thing to do.