In the Dark of Night

It is a nightly ritual of mine to venture out onto the back porch, scanning the woodlands below the slope for diners at the deer feeder. Using my high-beam flashlight to light up the woods, I always hope I will discover some “green” eyes reflecting back at me. Specifically, I’m hoping to catch a glimpse of orange-collared Daisy deer.

When we first moved on this little ranch, I did not really enjoy the nighttime.  Coyotes howled in the distance and sometimes ventured near the house.  With no outdoor lighting on the property except a couple of motion lights on the front and back porches, it was completely dark… blackness surrounded us.  Only the twinkling stars and a sometimes full moon lit the sky at night.

When Daisy deer came into our lives, I learned to appreciate her world.  At night, deer and most other wildlife are very active.  In time, I no longer feared the night sounds and found that I actually enjoyed the rhythm of the night creatures.  Even the baying and howling of the coyotes was intriguing and exciting!

It had been since late December that we had seen Daisy deer on our property.  We had spotted her a half-mile from here, in an area near the old river channel.  I had also discovered her a couple of times further down the river – about a mile away, always with a couple of wild does.  It was comforting to know she had managed to find a place in the local herd, and she seemed to be flourishing on her own.

FD and I had both noticed a change in our girl after the rutting season in November 2012. It was apparent that our little orphaned fawn had grown up.  She was a young lady now and we wondered if she would become a mother this coming spring, having been spotted over a period of three days during this past autumn’s rutting season, in the company of, and trying desperately to avoid, a young buck.

This photograph was taken at dusk, a time we might spot Daisy and her friends grazing on wheat in the field beyond.

All through January and February, I scanned the feeding area in the darkness in hopes of seeing Daisy, but she did not come back.  Becoming discouraged, I quit going outside after dark to look for her.  I still prayed to God/Universe each night to protect her and keep her safe. Part of me still worried, but I could not dwell on thoughts of where she might be.  I had to trust she was fine.  After all, she had managed for more than a year on her own and proven she was capable of surviving in the wild.

Ever hopeful, FD continued the nightly vigil, watching the canyon and hoping to see some sign of Daisy’s return.  Though we knew from hoof prints found some mornings that one or two deer occasionally stopped to nibble a little feed in the night, we were not seeing any deer at the feeder.  Most mornings, I found only evidence of raccoons, squirrels and birds having visited the feeders.  In March, I found wild hog prints in the sand, and torn up patches from their rooting and wallowing near the feeders.  Those beasts had actually moved both of the feeding trays far from their normal spots and gobbled up every bit of the deer feed!  Since we were not seeing much sign of deer activity anyway, we decided not to put deer feed down for a time. Obviously, we were attracting some undesirables to the feeding area!

Finally, in late March, FD found Daisy at the feeders a few times.  However, she was usually with other does and FD was mindful to leave Daisy alone when he saw other deer accompanying her in the woods. Instead, he would observe her and her friends through binoculars, looking out the back door. During one visit, FD noted Daisy seemed to be the dominant one of the group. She fed at the corn feeder and sometimes hoofed the others off if they attempted to feed at the same time.  A few times, he found Daisy alone and managed to brush her and visit with her for a short time before she took off into the woods. FD wondered if her companions were nearby, as she always seemed to be in a hurry.

Last weekend, FD and I worked very hard moving dirt and repairing fences on the ten-acre ranch.  After Saturday’s work, I opted to go to bed early to rest my weary muscles, as I knew Sunday would be another hard day since the weather looked to be favorable again. I am not sure how long I had dozed, but FD gently awoke me around 11:30 saying that Daisy deer was at the corn feeder – alone.  He did not need to ask if I wanted to get up… I shot out of the bed and dressed quickly, hoping to get down there before she took off. Daisy was like that – we would spot her and just seconds later she would disappear into the woods.

Shining the flashlight down to the base of the slope, I caught her beautiful dark eyes, shaded by long lashes, looking up at us.  She was a little wary until we offered our hands for her to sniff.  Assured it was us, Daisy relaxed and went back to her nibbling.  We petted her and spoke softly to her.  We did manage to pick a few ticks off of her ears, but she was distracted by two gray foxes trotting past as they made their way into the pecan orchard. Being the night hunters that they are, we frequently see the fox pair just before dark and again at dusk each morning.  Whenever she spots them, Daisy has always run off the foxes and feral cats in the area.  That night was no different!  She stomped off after the foxes and disappeared into the woods.

This past Monday night, I grabbed the flashlight at 9:30 to let our three little Japanese Chin out front to do their final business of the day.  As usual, Zoe and Bear took off to the north while Tori went south.  Why they could never go as a group was unknown to me! I was always watchful this time of night… scanning with my flashlight to look for predators by land and air. Zoe is small enough for an owl to snatch up, and Tori and Bear would certainly be coyote or bobcat dinner if I was not looking out for them!

This particular night, I spotted a big, brown shape in the pasture.  It was a deer, and it seemed to be alone.  Letting the dogs back inside, I announced to FD there was a deer in the pasture, and he came out to investigate. Noticing the wind was blowing our human scent right at the deer, and it did not seem to be alarmed, FD declared that it had to be Daisy and began moving closer. Soon, he could pick out the blaze orange collar, sliding up and down her neck as Daisy raised and lowered her head to feed.

It was a beautiful and quiet, starlit night, with warm temperatures. And there was Daisy, nibbling on vetch in the pasture just south of our house!  As we approached and lowered the flashlight, Daisy relaxed and, after a sniff of hands and arms, once again allowed us to pet her and pick ticks off of her. At one point, she stopped to lick FD’s forehead, something she had always done as a fawn.  She grazed a bit longer, and then headed down to the canyon to meet two other does who were at the feeders, waiting for her.

Daisy’s hoof print in the soft, red soil of the canyon.

On Wednesday, spring storms moved in by late afternoon.  Our area seemed to be just north of the line of heavy storms. This evening, southwestern Oklahoma was being blasted by strong winds, heavy rains, large hail and even tornadoes.  As I always do during threatening weather, I sent out a prayer for Daisy’s safety and comfort.  The combination of rain, wind and cold is tough on wildlife, and the temperatures dropped forty degrees in a short time as the storms moved through.  Daisy was showing signs of the spring shed, and was beginning to look very unkempt, but I knew she still had a lot of her winter coat left and would weather this storm too, as she had done many times since her release. Still I worried…

By 10:30 p.m.,  most of the volatile storm activity had diminished and FD took his flashlight out one last time to check the feeders below the house.  There was Daisy munching corn in the soft rain! Both relieved and elated, we padded down to greet her and give her some “fruity kibbles”, a name we gave the deer attractant that Daisy loved to snack on!  With more than 4 inches of rain falling over the last few hours, the ground was soft and sloppy and Daisy’s hooves and legs were mud-covered.  We too, sunk into the muck where she stood.

After a time, Daisy trotted up the slope to the yard and FD went to fetch my yellow rain jacket so that I could continue to walk with her.  She grazed around the yard and into the pasture south of the house while I spoke gently to her.  I listened to the tapping of rain on my jacket. I could smell the cedar trees, and the scent of earth as I walked alongside her.  I heard the squeak and “rip” of green vegetation as she nibbled vetch and other tasty weeds in the pasture. This was a magical world she lived in, and all was right for me in this strange darkness.  Enveloped in the warmth of my coat and rain jacket, and reveling in Daisy’s company, I felt comfort in the blackness of night. I did not feel fear or worry. Peace and tranquility were mine for that moment! For even in the darkness, nature speaks to us.

Suddenly the skies let loose with a torrent of rain.  I bid my girl a hurried goodbye wish as she ran off to the woods. I trudged back to the house in the opposite direction with a heavy heart, thunder rolling in the distance.  It is never easy to part ways and watch her run off all alone.  For often, I long to be with her, running wild and free in the night!

By the way, FD and I are fairly certain our very robust girl is expecting!  Looking back at photos of her with her young beau in November, we can only estimate an approximate “due date” of early to mid-June.  The next month will tell us more, I’m sure, and I will continue to look for Daisy in the nighttime hours – the hours when she is free to roam as deer do… and the hours when I find unexpected comfort in the darkness.

© Day by Day the Farm Girl Way…