Many critters around at Christmas time!

Daisy and Dorah play in the caterpillar

To join in this fun meme, Camera Critters. And

Saturday's Critters #4

3 cats, one in a box

Dorah was exhausted with our company!

3 cats and hubby - Buster on the stool

Daisy trying to figure out where the bird song
is coming from!
Don't you love webcams?

We think this is our buddy, Tigger, all grown up!
We've watching him since he was a baby.
He came last Dec., too:
Tigger popped by for a visit today!

 We usually only have female deer in our backyard. We've carried on the tradition of feeding them (the previous owners did, too) with excellent quality MNR recipe deer food from Dodds and Irwin.

Yes, there are many reasons NOT to feed them. We've weighed it all out, thought about it, and continue the tradition, since the near-by hunting camp with their tree stands bait them with food.

We have 16 acres, which back onto another 35, which backs on to Ian Miller's 600 acres. It's a lovely winter yard for them. We seldom see them in summer, and only a few times have seen the speckled fawns.

We've learned a lot about them. They are interesting.

We see them visit, and cannot identify them, except for Tigger. He was obvious by his behaviour! He would bounce up to us as we

Young Tigger - summer 2011
He wasn't too upset and ignored me.
Highly unusual behaviour for our beasts.

went to put out feed. All of the others would back off and wait, for the most part.

I was walking on the grassy knoll his first summer, he surprised me, and up popped his head.

We don't get too close, and they seem to differentiate between us and strangers, which is good. I just pray the hunters don't take out our Tigger. There was a crossbow kill this month, she staggered for many metres all night, until she died. I'm happy it was a no-name deer and not one we could recognize. We've been seeing 7 - 9 in the daytime.

Deer only live an average 3 - 5 years in the wild. There are many human and canine predators in our forests (wolf, coyotes, foxes), all of whom benefit from kills, as well as roadkill. The wolf  hauled away a roadkill deer last year. Too many speed on our highways and biways (right across the continent– my blog buddies tell me). We've found quite a few in our ditches.

Tigger, who came with his twin last year:
Look who brought his brother to visit!

This is a new buck.
One antler looks odd. It's soon time to drop them.
Deer shed hunting!

Tigger would follow me an' Ollie (2011)
with Tigger's twin brother in the background.
It was the funniest thing.

Deer in the snow

Another young buck made a visit

She heard something in the forest,
see her leg raised to stamp!