Injured Deer

[keekee]

If you live in Town Creek, I'm sure you see many deer in your yard, usually eating your shrubs and flowers.
A few nights ago I watched 3 deer pass thru the yard, followed by a deer with a badly broken front leg.
The deer was trying to walk on the leg, which was unuseable and bending in all sorts of unnatural directions.
I don't particularly like our neighborhood deer (because they kill everything I plant), but I felt really bad for this one.
I thought it needed to be put out of it's misery, but obviously you can't fire a gun in a neighborhood.
I thought about calling the police to shoot it, but I knew it would be long gone before they arrived, if they even bothered.

So I went online to see what it's survival chances were.
I read that a deer's body is quite efficient for dealing with broken legs.
Their bodies produce natural pain killers, and then cut off blood supply to the limb.
The limb then dies and falls off..! ...and the deer adapts to walking on three legs.
The deer has a very good chance of survival. Pretty cool.

So if you see her around the hood, post an update... and don't shoot her!

 

[glhs837]

Did not know that. Cool.

 

[keekee]

It must be true because I read it on the internet.........
...oh and when I said don't shoot her - I meant unless you plan to eat her.

I hope to eventually see her happily eating my flowers on three legs so that I can dislike her again...
For now she gets a free pass.

 

[KDENISE977]

We had a little deer with a broken leg that I saw occasionally at my house, I'd see her at the top of the drive way with a dangling leg. I thought for sure she would go off in the woods and die...nope, she kept coming around for some time...leg still dangling. Looked awful, but it was a back leg though so she got around pretty good !

 

[Vince]

Every year I plant tomatoes and every year, as soon as the blooms are on them, the dayum deer come and eat them. Wish I were in an area where I could shoot them.

 

[keekee]

Every year I plant tomatoes and every year, as soon as the blooms are on them, the dayum deer come and eat them. Wish I were in an area where I could shoot them.

I really believe that they know they have it made in neighborhoods.
They have all sorts of flowers/shrubs/veggies to graze on, and nobody can touch them.
Town Creek is overrun with them.
They don't seem too afraid of people either... they look at you like they couldn't care less.
I have finally outsmarted them with an 8 foot garden fence.
Last year was the first in many when my tomatoes were eaten by humans!
However they did get my lilies and a whole row of silver king euonymus...

 

[Vince]

I really believe that they know they have it made in neighborhoods.
They have all sorts of flowers/shrubs/veggies to graze on, and nobody can touch them.
Town Creek is overrun with them.
They don't seem too afraid of people either... they look at you like they couldn't care less.
I have finally outsmarted them with an 8 foot garden fence.
Last year was the first in many when my tomatoes were eaten by humans!
However they did get my lilies and a whole row of silver king euonymus...

It's too late this year, but in the fall I'm putting that 8' high fence up. Been meaning to do it for a long time now and this year it's getting done.

 

[desertrat]

If you live in Town Creek, I'm sure you see many deer in your yard, usually eating your shrubs and flowers.
A few nights ago I watched 3 deer pass thru the yard, followed by a deer with a badly broken front leg.
The deer was trying to walk on the leg, which was unuseable and bending in all sorts of unnatural directions.
I don't particularly like our neighborhood deer (because they kill everything I plant), but I felt really bad for this one.
I thought it needed to be put out of it's misery, but obviously you can't fire a gun in a neighborhood.
I thought about calling the police to shoot it, but I knew it would be long gone before they arrived, if they even bothered.

So I went online to see what it's survival chances were.
I read that a deer's body is quite efficient for dealing with broken legs.
Their bodies produce natural pain killers, and then cut off blood supply to the limb.
The limb then dies and falls off..! ...and the deer adapts to walking on three legs.
The deer has a very good chance of survival. Pretty cool.

So if you see her around the hood, post an update... and don't shoot her!

Had a doe that used to pass through quite often. Left front I think it was, bent in two different directions, but had knit together like that. She got around just fine, was the herd leader and I even saw her with fawns. Haven't seen her for a few years now though.

 

[keekee]

She was in the front yard this morning when I left for work. If I had come out more slowly I could have snapped a pic... but I startled her and she ran into the woods.
There is only a small section of leg left - about 8 inches or so. She looked healthy, and had no problem running off...
Only difference was, when we saw her in bad shape, she was with several other deer, but she was alone this morning.
I'm not sure if deer are herd animals or not. I often see groups, and I often see lone deer.
Anyone know...?

 

[ArkRescue]

My relative had a young one show up with a broken leg (dangling from the lower joint) and it eventually the leg stiffened up and the deer was able to use it again. In the meantime we discovered the State won't do anything to help them.

In calling around about injured deer over the years, I did get one guy who was willing to come dart the deer that showed up with the arrow through it's neck/ear (he was going to surgically remove the arrow), but that deer didn't come back until it had already gotten the arrow out somehow (ear is permanently ripped across).