Happy St. Pat's - Deer Dog Days

The winter is tough for deer.  They survive the cold by eating the few remaining edibles - acorns and twigs.  Once things green up and start to grow, they've got it made.  Until then, they're living on the edge and just trying to survive.

This is a shot fom my security camera.  I just happened to catch a deer coming to the bird feeder.  How hungry do they need to be to do this?

Joan and I took a ride in the golf cart at home.  We found this deer out on #17.

I put a little corn out in two spots last week.  It attracted quite a crowd.

The second corn spot.  The deer are at their thinnest right now.

And at this time of year, you still get weather like this.

The deer grow a winter coat of grey hollow hair.  It looks like they've pretty well shed it by now.  In the summer, their coats are red/orange.

The first thing to start to turn green is the clover - this is the main field.

Also getting green below the high-rise stand.  Most of the shrubbery won't green up until late April or early May.

I found a set of shed antlers in the woods - the second one is beside the log.

Pretty decent but the rodents had been at work on them.

They are quick and will eat the whole antler before long.

This is the deer trail into the thick prickers where I found the antlers.

The National Wild Turkey Federation was having a sale on tree seedlings so I went ahead and ordered some.

I got 25 each of these two types.  Sawtooth oak and persimmon.  Both the deer and turkeys appreciate these trees.

Planted with a dibble bar.  My experience has been at least 50% attrition.

Another early sign of Spring.

I threw a few bulbs behind the target stand years ago.

I would like to meet this guy on the bottom right in about a month.  Nice looking gobbler.

Can you see the turkey head?  This is the only thing that showed up on camera.

Groundhog.

Possum.

Fox.

Tom and Joan.  It was nice enough both weekends for Joan to come out on a tour.

Can't believe that some of these young bucks still have antlers.  It's about time to start growing new ones.

No corn here - just minerals. But it still attracted a crowd.

Another antler.

Looking skinny.

Joan decided the 52" plasma tv was too small and not bright enough due to window glare.  New 70" LED seems to have done the trick.  Elk head needs to be raised.

 

Other exciting news - the deadbeat outfitter who screwed us on the elk hunt in 2012 has refunded 1/2 of our deposits.  He promises to pay the other 1/2 soon.

Current Events

My nephew Tom graduated from West Point last May.  This week he completed Ranger school.  It was apparently quite a test.

Here he is with his his Mom (my sister Sara).

At the farm today there was a fly-by with three Army choppers.

While Amy is living in a hotel in Virginia, we have houseguests.  Zulu on the left is Amy & Doug's and Chloe is ours.

And Ridley on the left is just visiting too.  Sydney is ours.

A very nice day at the farm - sunny and close to 60 degrees.  The pond is almost overflowing.

I went for a walk and found my first shed antler of the year.  It was in the woods just below the dining room in the barn.  Below is not a shed antler - it's a broken tine from a fight.

It is a decent 5 point - 21" on the main beam.

It's always disappointing  to find the damage from the deer.  This tree had been rubbed which left a wound that weakened the tree.

It's amazing the tree was alive.

This one probably won't survive.

Near the driveway stand - the trunk is about about 10" in diameter.

Poop of the week out in the main field.

Nature has been at work on this carcass.  I believe that it is the leftover from a doe that Leo butchered.  Three months and it's gone.

A deer highway coming up to the hi-rise stand.

A pile of deer hair below some barbed wire.

A coyote showed up on camera in daylight - pretty unusual.

This is more typical - a flash going by in the dark.

I put some minerals out for the deer.  It isn't antler growing season yet but you want to keep them out of a mineral deficit situation.

Also a little corn.  We'll see who shows up.  These last few weeks before things green up are the toughest time for the deer.

Another mineral site.

There was a pretty good snow storm last week.

Can't believe that this little guy hasn't shed his antlers yet.

Incidentally, I saw another woodcock this week.  I did some reading on them and they don't bore into trees.  Those holes that I saw last week are definitely woodpecker - probably the pilated ones.