‘No mom in sight’: A white tailed fawn was found on its own in Florida, rescuers say
A fawn was rescued in Southwest Florida after it was found on its own last Thursday.
According to the Clinic for the Rehabilitation of Wildlife, Inc. (CROW), the infant white-tailed deer was brought to a dropoff location, the BluePearl Pet Hospital, offering a wide range of veterinary services.
Because the animal was in a “healthy condition,” a wildlife rehabber immediately attempted re-nesting him; after several hours, it was clear the animal wasn’t able to live out in the wild by himself.
The fawn was transferred to Creature Safe Place nonprofiit sanctuary in Fort Pierce so that it could live with other members of its species.
CROW goes on to say in its Facebook post that it’s not rare to see a fawn on its own without mom for up to about 12 hours: “Deer will leave their young in what they believe to be” a safe spot for sometimes over 12 hours.”
The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission explains why: During the first few weeks of a fawn’s life, a doe will hide her offspring in tall vegetation — the brown hair with white spots provide “excellent camouflage” — then distance herself to prevent her scent from attracting predators.
The newborn animal, which does not have a scent yet, might lie motionless as a survival mechanism. That is why if you see a white-tailed fawn in the wild and it’s not moving, the FWC advises you to leave it be. More often than not, it’s not sick or injured.
“Sometimes people assume a fawn they find by itself has been abandoned, and they try to ‘rescue’ it,” the agency says. “If you find a fawn that you think is abandoned, do not touch it, pick it up or remove it from its natural environment. Instead, leave it alone and quietly move away from the area.”
It is unclear what happened to the doe in this recent case and why she did not return for her baby.
