The Dock Side Fawn is Safe for Now

We received word tonight that the fawn who was presumed dead for three days is safe and back to bouncing around at the Dock Side Green site. Apparently we should have trusted the doe to be the good mother that she is, to have moved her little one from imminent danger.

The alarm was raised, quite understandably, by CRD residents who have grown fond of the deer that have been living behind the plastic-lined chain link fence that surrounds the property. The three day absence of the fawn after the activity of heavy machinery was a legitimate cause for concern by observers. The situation for this small herd will continue to be a serious concern as the construction of Dock Side Green progresses.

As this deer family loses it's foothold on this safe place, and they are pushed further into Victoria West and Esquimalt, there will be residents who will observe them and will assert that the deer population is exploding. Three hundred new residential units are to be added to Vic West during the next construction phase. Three hundred new residents will be noticing a deer presence. Not all of them will be happy about that. The municipality of Esquimalt has voted to cull deer if 75% of the CRD municipalities agree to this method of “deer management.” The fate of the Dock Side deer will be intertwined with the policies of both Vic West and Esquimalt.

This little fawn is not out of the woods yet.

For myself, I have learned the difference between the teats of a doe who has recently nursed and those that are milk engorged.