Oh, Deer

This isn't what I was planning on writing about for my 100th blog entry. I planned on writing something witty, something "tongue-in-cheek", something light-hearted. But nothing like that happened but this did:

Jimmy called me downstairs to show me a strange deer outside. She came right up to him in the driveway, limping. The poor thing was obviously starved - her ribs were showing. She was limping and one hoof was turned under and she was walking on the back of it. He offered her an apple but she wouldn't (or couldn't) eat it. He was that close to her - he actually touched the apple to her mouth.

We could tell she was in grave distress. She was shaking and her legs were all wobbley. Drool was coming from her mouth and she was breathing hard. I heard a "bleeting", and turned toward the sound. It was coming from the edge of the brushy area near the pond. There stood her spotted fawn, crying for her. We couldn't tell if she had been hit by a car or if she was sick. Jimmy wondered if maybe she had some type of "mad cow" disease. Whatever had happened was going to be death for her.

We decided the best thing to do now would be to leave her alone. She'd either wander off on her own to die or she'd die here by the house. Later, I went out and she was still standing beside my car under the carport. Jimmy had to leave but he called me and we decided that I would call the game warden and see if someone could come out and put her down. We were still concerned that she might have a disease.

I called the game warden listed in the phone book. That office gave me a Richmond, VA number to call, saying that was where the game wardens were dispatched from. Oh, ok. I called that number and was told that there were no game wardens in Warren County. Oh, ok. Now what do I do, I asked. After being put on hold for a long time, she came back on the line and said that she'd notify someone and have that someone call me back, hopefully today. Oh, ok. Great! I have a sick and dying deer in my yard and a very unhappy fawn crying for its mother. I also have two young granddaughters in the house wondering what's going to happen to Bambi. Hmmm.

I went out again to check on her and found her under the forsythia bush, barely breathing, all tangled up in the branches. She looked like she was hanging herself. I pulled back the branches and with another broken branch, I tried to unhook her head and neck from the twisted branches. Finally, she was able to lie down completely.

Officer Kevin Bilwin called me about the deer. He said he was in southern Page County and couldn't get to my house today. Oh, ok. Just dandy! He also said that if Jimmy wanted to put the deer down, he could. I asked him about "mad cow" type diseases and he said he didn't think that was a possibility. He suggested that maybe she was hit by a car or had been injured somehow. Duh!

By the time Jimmy returned home, the deer had managed to twist and pull, jump and jerk and kick her way out of the bush. By this time, she was really struggling to breathe. This needed to be over. She was in agony. No one could help her. The fawn had disappeared into the woods. I hope it's old enough to be on its own. I kinda doubt it, though. Jimmy took out his pistol and put an end to it. I know that's the best thing to do, but I still hated it.

It was strange how she came up to the house. Did she hope we'd take care of her baby? Was she looking for help for herself? She was a pitiful sight - limping, shaking, struggling to breathe, drooling. I really wanted to help her but I was also afraid to get too close.