Canis lupus hominis

And  Miley sure learned that lesson– the hard way.

Miley and I were out for a good nature walk this weekend. It was really a nice Saturday, for the past week had been nothing but rain. In fact, Thursday and Friday were very cold for June with temperatures hovering at a chilly 55 degrees. So when the clouds melted away last Saturday and the temperature rose into the 70’s,  man and dog ventured out.

Now, Miley has very modest hunting instincts. She will cast and quarter on her own, but she’d rather just run like mad. Like most golden retrievers, she will flush birds, and like most goldens, her favorite birds to send up are wild turkeys. I knew that the wild turkeys like to hang out in a stand of tall tulip poplars that grew just off the main trail. Miley knew also knew this, so when I saw her get excited and charge into the timber, I thought I would soon hear the cackle of wild turkeys as they gushed up into the trees.

As Miley disappeared into the trees, I kept on walking. I knew that the turkeys would soon be errupting from the forest floor.

Then I heard the brush cracking. Had Miley caught a turkey? Surely not.

The noise got louder and louder for about five seconds. Then I heard Miley let loose a golden retriever growl as she burst through some small sapplings that lay adjacent to the trail. Close behind her was a large white-tail doe. The doe was gaining close on her as the two disappeared on the other side of the path.

For a few minutes, I heard nothing.

Then I started to worry. A few years ago, a beagle made statewide news after a doe stomped large, gaping holes into his body. My grandpa had a chihuahua/dachshund cross was nearly stomped to death by a doe. So I knew the risks.

A few minutes later, Miley came trotting down the trail behind me. I suppose she had doubled back on the doe after the deer had given up her pursuit. She was fine.

Although we’ve passed this stand of poplars several times since, Miley refuses to enter. Yes, even if there are squirrels or mourning doves in there!

What makes does aggressive towards dogs this time of year?

Well, it’s the maternal instinct. In late May or early June in this part of the world, the white-tailed does have their fawns. One of the major predators of fawns here are domestic dogs and coyotes, and does will try to protect their offspring. Small dogs that can’t get away often wind up victims of deer attacks.

Does leave their fawns  in the undergrowth when they go to graze, and that’s when the fawns can fall victim to predators.  Fawns instinctively hunker down in the undergrowth, relying upon their spots as camouflage. If a dog finds one, the fawn might start screaming (and there’s no other way to describe the noise they make) and that brings in their mothers. This particular doe was very close to her fawn, for I heard no fawn screams. When she saw the galloping golden, her cervid brain said,”Enemy,” and she went after her.

Now, white-tails are not the most protective of mother deer. That title goes to the white-tail’s close relative, the mule deer. Mule deer does will defend fawns that belong to other mule deer does, and they will even defend white-tail fawns.  White-tails only defend their fawns during this vulnerable period, but muleys will defend their offspring as they mature.

So when you have your dogs off-leash in the forest, keep in mind that deer are a much greater concern than coyotes.