# This beautiful buck let me get so close to him today.



## Ruth n Jersey (Nov 8, 2017)

I came home from grocery shopping today and saw this beautiful buck and his mate laying in my backyard. I ran in to get my camera and slowly walked toward them. I think if I had an apple or some corn he would have taken it from my hand. I was only able to get the buck in the photo. It looks like he has his winter coat on already. I just hope they both make it through hunting season even though they help themselves to my garden each spring I wouldn't want anything to happen to them.


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## applecruncher (Nov 8, 2017)

*Marvelous pics! *  (I doubt I would have been brave enough to get that close)


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## hollydolly (Nov 8, 2017)

Oh Wow!! what a glorious sight for you....


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## Lara (Nov 8, 2017)

BEAUTIFUL!!!! Oh yes, let them stay in your livingroom for the hunting season . 
But seriously, check out this video...


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## Don M. (Nov 8, 2017)

A buck deer is a beautiful animal.  We've got a half dozen females and yearlings hanging around our place...and in the last couple of weeks I've seen a really nice 8 point buck hanging around.  With deer season quickly approaching, I hope he is able to "hide out" from the hunters.  I, and most of our neighbors, have pretty much quit hunting, so his chances are fairly good if he stays close to the houses.  I have to run some errands in the morning, and I may just stop at the feed store and pick up a sack of corn and start putting out a pan every morning...that will keep them close to the yard, and safe.


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## SeaBreeze (Nov 8, 2017)

Beautiful Ruth, great photos!  We don't get them right in our yard because of the fence, but they are often on the other side, it is thrilling to get close to them and photograph their beauty!


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## Falcon (Nov 8, 2017)

Nice  going Ruth.  Some people have all the luck.


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## Ruth n Jersey (Nov 8, 2017)

I'm glad you liked my photo but today didn't have a good ending. I was thrilled to get that photo of the deer and  mentioned it to my son who stopped by after work. His shop is about 4 miles from our home. He told me he saw a deer running around the neighborhood near his shop early this morning with an arrow sticking out of him. It made me sick to think about it. I can honestly say if I had such a weapon and knew the person who shot that poor defenseless deer I would have no problem doing the same thing to him or her. At least with a gun there is more of a chance to kill the poor thing outright. It wasn't my deer because I saw him much later in the day. I only hope the poor thing isn't laying in agony in the woods.


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## applecruncher (Nov 8, 2017)

aaww


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## SeaBreeze (Nov 8, 2017)

Is it hunting season there Ruth, or was it just some sicko that did it?


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## Ruth n Jersey (Nov 8, 2017)

Yes,I think hunting season has begun. They just had bear hunt and killed quite a few. I love how they don't say killed but use the word harvested like those poor animals are vegetables. I know the drill,we will be overrun with them and they have to thin them out to keep them healthy, but there has to be a better way.


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## SeaBreeze (Nov 8, 2017)

It's sad when they go bow hunting, I'd much rather see them use black powder, that's usually allowed by me during that season.  Regular rifles are used this time of year I think, not sure, we don't hunt.  When we were camping in early September, it was bow and black powder.  It seems like a much quicker and cleaner kill with a rifle for sure.


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## Don M. (Nov 9, 2017)

When I was an active hunter, I came across 3 or 4 deer which had been wounded by a bow hunter, and never tracked down for the kill.  Bow hunting requires a lot of skill to get a clean and fatal shot...a skill which seems to be lacking in many bow hunters.  Plus, when hit by an arrow, most deer will survive for quite awhile, and if a bow hunter doesn't follow the trail, the deer is usually just wasted.  If a hunter isn't sure of being able to dispatch the deer quickly, they would be better off just staying home....IMO.


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## CeeCee (Nov 9, 2017)

Don M. said:


> When I was an active hunter, I came across 3 or 4 deer which had been wounded by a bow hunter, and never tracked down for the kill.  Bow hunting requires a lot of skill to get a clean and fatal shot...a skill which seems to be lacking in many bow hunters.  Plus, when hit by an arrow, most deer will survive for quite awhile, and if a bow hunter doesn't follow the trail, the deer is usually just wasted.  If a hunter isn't sure of being able to dispatch the deer quickly, they would be better off just staying home....IMO.



Thats so sad! 

My late husband was an avid hunter but with guns...I still didn't like it and I don't like the taste of wild game so he wasn't allowed to bring home anything he killed, he had to give it to his friends.  His buddies would sometimes give him him some sausages they made and that was okay by me.

I can't understand how anyone could kill a deer but I don't judge.  It is necessary some places because they become overrun in populated areas.

This happened in Elk Grove Village, Illinois as I recall.


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## Ruthanne (Nov 9, 2017)

CeeCee said:


> Thats so sad!
> 
> My late husband was an avid hunter but with guns...I still didn't like it and I don't like the taste of wild game so he wasn't allowed to bring home anything he killed, he had to give it to his friends.  His buddies would sometimes give him him some sausages they made and that was okay by me.
> 
> ...


There's got to be more ways to control the population than killing them IMHO.  It's the cheapest way to go that's for sure.  Cheapos.


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## Ruth n Jersey (Nov 9, 2017)

Don M. Thanks for being a compassionate hunter, many are not. Ruthanne, a few years back they actually tried birth control methods. They scattered pellets that the deer ate. This did work but other animals ate them as well and it was extremely expensive. Of course they don't say how expensive and I doubt they tried very hard to make the pellets from something only the deer would eat. Who knows? I did go out to buy some corn and deer apples to try and keep the deer close to my house but I can't keep up with them. The squirrels love the corn also. One good thing, I haven't heard any shots today.


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## hearlady (Nov 10, 2017)

They are beautiful!


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## NancyNGA (Nov 10, 2017)

Don't put out too much corn at one time---like a whole 40 lb bag.  It's about the worst thing you could give them, if they aren't used to it.  Hunters bait them with corn, but they don't need to worry about its effect on the deer.

Not saying this just because it's junk food.  If a ruminant animal is not used to simple carbohydrates, they haven't developed enough of the right bacteria in their stomachs to digest it. The corn rots in their stomachs and puts off a toxic substance that could kill them. 

Corn Toxicity in Ruminants (Deer and Elk)


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## Don M. (Nov 10, 2017)

NancyNGA said:


> Don't put out too much corn at one time---like a whole 40 lb bag.  It's about the worst thing you could give them, if they aren't used to it.  Hunters bait them with corn, but they don't need to worry about its effect on the deer.



Yes, its NOT a good idea to feed the deers too much corn.  I usually feed them corn every Winter, when their normal vegetation is dormant.  I only put out about 1lb. a day...just an inch or so in on old sauce pan...and scatter it around a fairly large area.  That way, they can gather, and find a few pieces to nibble on and give them a little extra nutrition.  If I put it all in one pile, they start to fight with each other, and expend all their energy rearing up on their hind legs and "pawing" at each other.  A 50lb. bag usually lasts me 4 or 5 weeks.  Between the corn and keeping fresh water in the bird bath, our little herd stays fairly close....and most survive Hunting season.


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## Ruth n Jersey (Nov 10, 2017)

That is very interesting, I didn't know corn could be harmful. Right now most of what I put out are apples. We do live near a lot of corn fields and I see them grazing. Hopefully their systems are ok with that. I did find out why I was able to get so close to that buck. I was telling my neighbor about it and she said she is hand feeding the deer in her backyard. I don't think that is a good idea. I can just see them walking right up to the hunters. I told her that but I'm not sure she will stop.


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