Memo the white tailed fawn

I am raising came to me almost dead, seems some deer

will leave a weak twin behind, and this one was found

dehydrated and barely alive. Some friends brought her

to me and she was barely 10 inches high, but I got her

to drink a combo of goats milk and yogut a few ounces

the first day. Then the next day she drank almost 15

ounces, and Memo named short for the weekend I got her

on Memorial Day weekend began her life and I became her

parents. The first few months were tough, seeings she

needed help using the bathroom, and with the help of an

aloe lotion I applied, she learned to lick her self

clean. I kept her on a leash that was a 25 foot

retractable type and allowed her to run more, but she

got used to walking with the dogs and sometimes chasing

each other. I feed alot of deer where I live that

doesn't allow gun hunting and land owners can keep the

bow hunters out, so the population is big. I find that

if you feed them they leave your plants around your

house alone, so I provide 400 pounds of feed a month to

the deer and 30 pounds of bird seed for the birds also.

She is now 6 months old and me, her and the dogs take

alot of walks or runs... she no longer on a leash, I

just keep a filed down bright orange collar on her for

her protection, seeings deer hunters recognize this as

being a pet deer. Its neat when her and I take walks

in the woods, all the critters like squirrels aren't as

scared of me when a deer walks up to me and licks my

hand. I have had other deer walk within 5 feet of me

just to check out Memo and they usually smell of her and

I guess smell human on her and try and kick her and scare

her away and she usually runs behind me with her tail in

the air. I am going to post updates on this page as she

grows up. She has helped my health out alot, I take

daily walks with her and they are usually over a mile or

more through the woods and she follows me like a dog

would follow you. She lives below the deck, which is

40 feet by 10 feet deep and about 5 feet height, which is

hard on me seeings I am 6'2", lol, tho I manage not to

knock my head off, but its her home. its has a lattice

wall around it, this gives her protection and its hay

lined for her to keep warm. I added another picture

of Memo when she tried to go under a barbed wire fence,

I used aloe lolion on it to help and she healed ok.



Update; January 20th 2011

I added a few more pictures Of Memo and these include

Memo in the house as she explored and went over to a

chair where the dogs were and licked them. The last

picture is a closeup I took of her while I was

sitting and petting her, I think she was trying to

eat the camera...



Update; March 10th 2011

Memo is FREE, I set her free without a collar on my

Birthday February 27th and she comes around daily.

I also notice she still sleeps in the area I kept her

in, I have the area open to her. I also keep the water

and food bowls full too. When I take my daily walks

she is by my side running and appears to be having fun.

Memo and the dogs still play daily, its like another

dog in the family, when I call the dogs to come in Memo

is first in line to come in. At the deer feeder and out

on our walks I see the other deer trying to get to know

Memo and a few bucks try and follow her too, but Memo

appears to be a bit shy to them. Posting a few new

pictures too. I'll post another update soon.



Update; June 7th, 2011

Memo has joined an area herd of deer, several bucks

and doe's and even a new born fawn in the herd. She

still brings her friends by daily for the deer food I

put out for them and she still has food and water

under the deck she still uses, but rarely spends the

night there any more. She spends time with me while

they are eating and when they leave she leaves

with them. I have a field beside my home that my

neighbor keeps mowed and this is where the deer lay

down in the afternoon, alot of shady places for them

to relax. I kept the collar on until she was a year

old and its off her now and only reason I had it on

was I soaked it in pet flea and tick protection. I

tried some frontline on her and she is the most tick

free deer in the herd. When she comes to me she will

let me pick ticks off her and she still loves her neck,

head, and shoulders rubbed. I have a device called

an "O 'Tom" for picking ticks off her, its a miniture

version of a nail puller, and was sold at a pet store

for dogs. All I ever wanted for Memo was for her to

have a chance in this world and be able to grow up in

her world and she is living her world. She has friends

she hangs with and who knows one of those two bigger

bucks that sits with her alot may be her boy friend.

I have been feeding the deer for over 5 years and I live

in the woods and my home has beautiful flowers and herbs

growing, not chewed down like those who don't feed the deer.

And its not just the deer the plants have to worry about,

there are alot of rabbits too. But at the deer feed station

I have in my yard I see all kinds of critters enjoying the

feed and staying away from my yard plants. We lost one of

our dogs a few weeks ago and buried him in a pet cemetary

near the house, Memo and Buddy the chihuahua were close and I

have found her some days laying by Buddy's grave. And Joy

my other chihuahua goes to visit him at his grave too. Memo

is social, when friends and family come by she comes by and

visits too with them, she is one of the family and don't want

to be left out. If she would be coming home all beat up like

some made me believe would happen I would be more worried about

her, but each time I see her she looks fine and healthy too.

I am going to have some major surgery soon and will be out

recovering for a while and will be back to the updates as soon

as possible. I am a surviver of Cancer, and a triple by pass

heart surgery, and now I face a stomach anerism that needs a

graff. Raising Memo kept me in better shape in all the exercise

that it takes to raise a deer. She came to me yesterday

and I could see her deer friends near and for some

reason she didn't want me to pet her, but she led me

under the deck to her home and allowed me to pet

her all I wanted too. I do find her laying under the

deck when its the hottest part of the day, while the

other deer are laying out in the field by the house,

but most of the time she is laying by her new

boyfriend in the field. When I have the surgery I

will be gone for over a week for recoverying in the

hospital, and I am going to have someone put feed

and water out daily for Memo and the deer while I am

gone. Memo has become part of the area herd and I

think she will be fine...



Update; December 13th, 2011

I wanted to update friends of Memo and I about my

health issues I mentioned at the last of my comments

I made towards Memo. I am good shape, after a

surgery that required the surgeon to break a few ribs

and a 44 staple cut from belly button around heart

side to below my shoulder area to get in to do the

surgery. I also chose to give up smoking after

smoking for over 20 years and so far I have not

smoked any yet. Memo Is usually a daily visitor to

the house, I just hooked up her water dish that keeps

the water from freezing in it for her water. And was

under the deck area of her home yesterday putting out

fresh food and she was there eating. Some days when

the weather is ok, Memo and Joy my chihuahua take

walks together. I can be petting her while we are

anywhere I can sit and when gun shots,(I live a few

miles from a gun range shooting area) go off she turns

her head that way and listens, but seems to be calmed

when I pet her and let her know she is loved here.

I don't have near the visitors I normally have at the

deer feed station because the deer are eating the acorns

in the woods and its hunting season. But since I have

been raising this deer many more neighbors have put up

no hunting signs. I was out with Memo walking a few

days ago and she put her tail up in the air and pointed

out some deer near us to me. I walked her through the

area where the deer herd was and one little buck

yearling acted like it was friends with Memo, I captured

a few pictures of the two together and by the way Memo

uses her ears to show anger or happiness I seen this was

a friend. This is the same herd that I have fed most all

these deer for several years and Memo hangs with them a

lot, I am happy she has some deer to have as friends.

There are a lot of area's near the house here for her to

have a well hidden home at night and I have found her

hidden in those area's too during the day, some days she

stays near and some days she is with a herd on an

adventure and comes back every few days. I'll post a few

more new pictures and keep all updated on her progress

through time, my email is tom55ark@hotmail.com, if you

would like to email comments to me(just put Memo the

deer in the subject line.)

Tom



Update; February 27th, 2012

Its been a year since I took off Memo's collar

and she still comes by daily with another single

deer or even a buck that hangs on the edge of

the woods watching or with a herd of Deer, but

daily or even every other day I get a visit from

the deer I raised and she and the dogs enjoy

visits too. I check her belly daily for a kick

from a hopeful baby brewing in her. I just

updated with some new pictures I added which

includes Happy my new female Deerhead chihuahua

meeting Memo and a family picture of Memo, Joy,

and Happy. I am in good health also, healing

from my last surgery. Taking daily walks with

the dogs and deer and taking photograph's along

the way.

Tom








Song For Your Enjoyment


Wind Beneath My Wings


Barbra Streisand






December 3, 2010