When we moved to this community, I knew full well we were moving into the middle of the woods and there would be wildlife.. but I never realized I'd be this close.
First, there was the woodchuck
He was super cute and enjoyed chewing on the flowers that were in front of my house. This above photo was taken through the screen so he was probably no more than five feet from me. S/He kept showing up and we kept thinking it was adorable until we put the house on the market and in the process realized s/he had made a den right next to the front of the house. I probably wouldn't have cared (although I probably should have) but we figured this would be a negative trying to sell the house so I put a couple of piles of kitty poop near the den and poof, s/he was gone.
Then in July there was this:
Can't see it? Let me show you what I got from a different window.
The purple flowers in that last photo edge the walkway to the front door. She was probably 20-30 feet from me. Annoyingly someone in a van saw her and drove right up my driveway (past where she was about 10 feet) for some reason, I mean all the way up to the garage. I have no idea if they were trying to get a photo of her or scare her away.. I was not fit for human consumption at the moment (being in my pjs) or I would have run right out there and given them a piece of my mind.
Then we moved.
As I was driving back to the new house I rounded the corner and nearly smacked into a family of deer.
I was amazed at how close I was able to get to them. If I wasn't so fearful of deer ticks I would have gotten out of my car and tried to walk up to them (no one tell me this is a bad idea, I'm afraid enough of deer ticks to not do it). My husband and I have both seen them in that spot several times as of late. Sometimes with the fawns, sometimes not.
Then one morning in our backyard..
The rescuer in me wants to put out food and vitamins and whatever else I can to "help" them, but again my fear of deer ticks and the knowledge in the back of my head somewhere says that is a very bad idea.. but deer.. and deer with baby deer.. in my backyard!! come on.. you can't tell me a small part of you would want to do it too.
I have a ton of bee and butterfly photos on my larger SD card but I put that "some where safe" to move and haven't uncovered it yet. *sigh* I need a nap
Wait till they eat everything in your yard. But, caution, if the deer have been visiting, the ticks are pretty much where they've been already, especially shady areas with ground covers or mulch. Be prepared. Also, their digestion isn't prepared for our food and supplements, their natural forage is all around them. Water would be welcome to all if there isn't a natural source near.
ReplyDeleteI've sprinkled a little pee-soaked litter outside all entries to a den (there are usually at least two) and groundhogs (same animal, different state) are very meticulously neat and are horrified. Their kits are almost as cute as kittens.
I don't live in the woods. They just think I do. I have found a tick on myself and have been nowhere but my own yard.
Aren't deer beautiful? Bernadette is right, even down here where the greenery is plentiful year round, the deer are hard on the pretty things in your yard. I recently had to convince someone in the neighborhood that it wasn't her neighbor stealing her hibiscus flowers and stems, it was deer. They always make me smile when they come through our yard in the evening to raid the nearby bird feeders, though.
ReplyDeleteVishus Deer! Be careful! They might EAT you! Certainly the deer ticks want to.- the cats Mom says... pretty! Also, at her workplace just down the road, she's seen a gator, a rattlesnake (in a picture) and just before the entrance, a black bear who sadly didn't survive an encounter with a car. Lots and lots of wildlife, but somehow we don't really expect it where we are.
ReplyDeleteYou can get a salt lick if you want to keep them coming around.
ReplyDeleteI would probably add a salt lick but not food, unless there was some sort of emergency. Your property reminds me of my parents. Have you seen any turkeys?
ReplyDeleteI would be wary of deer ticks too, having already nursed The Hubby through one bout of Lyme Disease (he recovered in a month). I will tell my neighbor about cat poop and woodchucks; this I didn't know. I have a supply of one...hardy har har. I've rushed out of the house, in pj's...to yell at a gosh durn idiot...but usually The Hubby beats me out there, and he's always in jeans and he can really scare people!
ReplyDeleteSuch pretty country. When we first moved here the mom put apples out for the deer and then one of the neighbors complained about it because the deer come and eat all the plants and flowers. Now they come and eat the bird seed outta the feeder. Yesterday for the first time we actually saw a fox in our yard. That was interesting!
ReplyDeleteThey are such beautiful creatures.
ReplyDeleteWith the exception of the deer ticks, I'd love to live near all that wildlife.
ReplyDeleteI'm still thinking hard about trading city neighbors for some deer or other wildlife. Noise and obnoxiousness versus a few deer ticks . . . . but I do love being 6 minutes from Trader Joe's.
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