Big Buck Watching Me

[LovelyLadyLux]

Should start this by saying "The buck stops here!"

Was outside puttering around the garden getting stuff dug in and prepped for winter. Looked up and saw this guy watching me. Not only was he leisurely watching me he was laying down, chewing his cud and not at all bothered that I was moving around and working so close to him.



He didn't seem to be in a hurry to move on so I was able to get IN the house and then back outside again with my telephoto lens and catch him sitting on the rocks just outside my back fence.



Usually this time of year these guys make themselves scare cause it is open season on hunting them and if they're not too careful they could end up on a dinner table.

[Horus]

Wow that's some shot you did well to capture it, well done you
The biggest thing that we may get roaming around is a Fox or a Squirrel.

[LovelyLadyLux]

Actually these guys are not at all elusive around here. They are EVERYWHERE. We have quite an overpopulation, they're real pests and super destructive in the garden. Hence you're seeing the top of my 2 metre fence that goes all around the property now. Had to put a fence just to keep the deer out of the yard as they graze off and kill most plants.

Tragically over the last month Wildlife Conservation Officers shot and killed 2 young cougars that they believed followed the easy prey of deer into housing areas and then started to acclimate to being close to people. Sad they had to kill them. One did chase a local Mill Manager who ran but did get away and into his office before the cougar caught him.

[Horus]

Shame about the Cougars wildlife always suffers from mans expansion.

[LovelyLadyLux]

Here we have many multi mega environmentalists and counterculture people. Many see it as us encroaching on the deers territory. Don't disagree with that but there are so many deer they're thin, looking boney, clumps of hair gone - they are no longer healthy at all. EASY PREY for the pickings for the most part however if anybody is to even suggest a culling of the herd it brings out every weirdo and nutcase who extolls animals rights. Personally I'm FOR animal rights but sometimes actions have to be taken for the majority. Almost all the deer around here starve cause everybody fences so there really is very little available food for them to eat that is actually nutritious enough to keep them healthy and well. Culling out - humanely - half of them, round up the bucks, round up the does - whatever needs to be done should be done so that the few left can live well.

Point #2 - we end up preserving a few scrawny and in obvious ill healthy aka sickly deer which brings the predators in and then they end up getting killed. Takes LOTS more to raise up a cougar to adulthood than it does a deer and the cougars are only doing what they do and that is to take out the weak ones first 'cept ALL the deer here are WEAK.

Animal Wildlife and Conservation guys were really upset at having to kill 2 cougars too. They published their point(s) of view and let it be known that they take no pride or happiness in having to whack 2 young cougars over deer. This past month too they've had to trap a few bear who are coming into town. Bear don't really go after deer but they eat - well - they eat anything and they're coming in. Once they acclimate to people it can get ugly.

Lots of controversy here about these issues. I wish something would/could be done so that all the animals are healthy and happy and doing what they're supposed to be doing.

[Horus]

Obviously the deer should be managed properly and they could even be a natural resource if it is done properly, people should realise that these animals need to be controlled in restricted environments. People may not realise it or even like the idea, but deer are routinly culled by our forestry commission in the UK to control deer numbers within the forests.

[LovelyLadyLux]

Exactly. There desperately needs to be a culling but there is a super strong active voice here against this. Sad cause we now have way more deer than food and the deer are looking really bad. There is no problem some days looking out my back door and seeing upwards of 4 deer picking what they can off the rocks. Anytime anybody sees 4 deer together that are afraid of nothing it should be the signal something is really wrong. Mostly the deer look pretty bad too - skinny, scrawny, hair falling out etc.

This guy was looking really good which was surprising but again way too tame especially just to stay lying there (emphasis on the lying) for such a long time. Not natural for a wild deer. He should have at least been up and on his feet.