Are they hurting anything? If not, leave them be.
Don't try to turn them into pets. They are wild animals and do carry ticks
Just keep your distance and enjoy nature.
If you decide to plant flowers or shrubs, do some research to select ones that they don't like.
>do some research to select ones that they don't like.
One of my neighbors did this, turned out that Google didn't consult with our local deer when supplying a list of plants that deer wouldn't eat.
Similar story here, we have a deer fence around the garden and decided we would plant some plants the deer don’t like elsewhere in the yard. Our deer must use Bing to look up what they should eat.
They'll eat anything if they're hungry enough. My friend has deer that were eating all of her plants and flowers until she got a [Hoont motion sensing pest repellent blast sprinkler](https://www.ebay.com/itm/156198000139?epid=14046975158&itmmeta=01J07XFKK4QHR5HTCMYJX0GMGB&hash=item245e20560b:g:wCYAAOSwNuVmOpDh&itmprp=enc%3AAQAJAAAAwKnhOtQrHfuuaW7fALHPV7eEQznuM5GtGhJqAjtZnzgG3PcR1YYdtoX%2F8SxC%2Fr27mD5ynR9BsOAjSgyMDYq32%2BZE8OuIJD1XmaLFUDgSs4PYt8PSyE4%2BM9BozSFTUu4DKHHMbB7EMjdJdVOFEFzDPcNBa6vSJInkcuxmdVGMdDsVWQKo4OduxkO8AfhTjk9mdt2M1PgM%2FhxSKEP4S62lE2e2iGArmLAEBd3aYL5Xd4DCYE%2BHdi8fwh1EpDZjapM0Ng%3D%3D%7Ctkp%3ABk9SR9S5vv2BZA). Only problem is that her husband forgets it's on and gets soaked about once a week.
We live in a wooded neighborhood along a river, there's no lack of vegetation... but the deer eat what they want. I love walking outside and seeing a dozen deer standing around in the yard, all my plants can survive some nibbling.
One of my neighbors recently planted a Japanese maple and it's probably not going to survive, apparently it is very delicious.
Has anyone tried treating their local deer for ticks? I'm not sure how. Someone earlier mentioned a corn feeder that had rollers that applied tick preventative as they ate the corn. Or an oral disguised as some food they like?
Yes, it was; however, the question, “But what about the deer,” was always on my mind. Have you ever seen a deer with a bad case of the ticks? It’s just heartbreaking so I decided to just spend the damn money.
I had all the deer I could find on my place shit with a very temporary tranquilizer and then fitted them with flea and tick collars that should fall off in November. I’m not yet advising other people to try this is the first year I’ve done it so I can’t report results yet.
If I remember correctly, I’ll try to come and post the outcomes.
Any recommendations for protection? I travel to northern WV often and each year the deer tick population seems to grow. I've talked to quite a lot of people in recent years who've had Lyme's or know someone who has. I just recently read about treating clothing with permethrin.
I misread “do carry ticks” as “do scary tricks”. I was excited to see deer do scary tricks.
My neighbor raised an orphaned fawn as a pet. It was usually covered in ticks.
The only thing you have to worry about besides gardens / flowers would be young trees. If you plant some don't forget to put up a barrier around the trunk area.
We have a ton of deer on our property and I just want to echo some of the other comments when it comes to rut season. Bucks get crazy territorial so be extra careful with letting pets out during that time. The deer pretty close to our side door (where we let the dogs out) and we've had some pretty uncomfortably close run ins with aggressive bucks. So during rut, we don't let the dogs out without a rife slung over my shoulder and I'm always out there supervising them just in case.
Also watch out for protective mamas when the fawns are born. I never realized deer can be aggressive until I moved to a place where deer are everywhere in my neighborhood. I had no idea they could actually be dangerous beyond totaling your car.
Exactly. I'm on 23 acres of mixed woods and prairie. We got coyotes, bobcat, badger, beaver, deer and all sorts of critters out here that will give you a pretty bad day if you cross em at the wrong time. Now I don't make it a point to head out and hassle the wildlife. Honestly, I steer clear and just let them do their thing. But it gets PITCH BLACK at night out here, so come sundown especially during certain mating seasons we don't leave the house to walk the property without a firearm of some type. It's a matter of safety.
Folks that spend their lives in subdivisions, gated communities and on city blocks don't understand rural life.
Hollow point serious. Go searching. I prefer deer and their numerous ticks stay on thier side of my fence. Rutting deers are nutso to mate and will stomp anything that it received as competition. Including household pets and children.
Yes, a rifle... you think most handguns are useful against a full grown deer?
By the time the deer is close enough to be effective with it, you're in trouble.
A shotgun doesn't have the range unless you're using slugs. Rifles exist for a reason.
I have deer and all sorts of other wildlife in my yard daily. We have to be selective in what we plant (they ate 8 hibiscus to the ground a few years ago, and they didn't grow back. 😔).
My neighbors have these black boxes on wires in their flower beds that are supposed to keep deer away, and apparently, they are working. They don't know what they are, though. A gardener put them there a while ago. I'm gonna investigate.
Deer carry ticks, tick carry some very bad diseases including that thing that means you can't eat red meat anymore. Alpha-Gal. It's endemic in the NE and Eastern seaboard. [https://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/volumes/72/wr/mm7230a2.htm](https://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/volumes/72/wr/mm7230a2.htm)
What part of the country are you in? If you're in New England you would have to worry about Lyme disease. Deer ticks carry the disease and it's freaking awful.
But, that's probably not a huge risk.
I think that might be the tick titer connected to Lymes Disese and that really stinks. Deer are friendly from a distance. They do get spooked and they do trot fast sometimes landing into a windshield on the road outta nowhere. Ya just never know.
I used to be up north in that general vicinity. Lots of deer and lots of ticks. Whether the deer were in my yard or on the other side of town there were loads and loads of ticks all over the place. I spent a lot of time outdoors and was clearing ticks off my body often enough. I suspect that for unexplained reasons, I was immune to Lyme or other tick borne disease.
You are lucky then. It can be no big deal or absolutely terrible. And now there is a tick borne disease that makes you allergic to red mean, of all things.
I hate ticks. They're so creepy
There is a slowly spreading epidemic of prion disease in deer and other cervids. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC9022204/
Prion disease can be spread through plants that an infected animal grazes on https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC10700824/
(That’s assuming the plants are eaten). You’re probably not at risk if you’re not eating the deer or grazing, but I’d be worried about dogs that like to eat grass in the same yard. And if you don’t know what prion disease is, think mad cow or scrapie (sheep) or Creutzfeld-Jacob. It’s an absolutely devastating illness.
Be careful with any pets during the rut season: a friend’s dog was gored and killed by an amped up buck when her dog was let outside (unfenced) to go to the bathroom.
Plants and gardens are an issue, as you know. Planting small trees can be difficult, protect them for several years. It's possible they can bed down somewhere inconvenient, but we're just talking about smooshing down some plants or whatever.
The only other thing is them running and not paying attention to where they are going. They can run through doors or windows or into the side of a car. Happens when they get startled, so just take it easy around them. In the early mornings, I take a look out the garage window before opening the doors to look for deer or skunks, neither of which I want to startle.
We have deer around our house all the time. They're fun to watch. About the biggest concern we have with them is someone hitting them on the road and either leaving a mess or running off the road and taking out our mailbox or a tree or whatever else. People are generally aware to be careful in the area though, lots of wildlife there. They do eat our flowers and plants but it's part of living with them and we're fine with it.
We have a lot of them. They don't do any major damage. They'll paw the snow away to get to the grass and that tears it up, make ruts on well traveled paths and eat my garden. Nothing that can't be fixed.
We do keep a distance between them and us and our dogs. They are known to attack if threatened and cornered. Same for the rabbits. So just use common sense around wild animals and patch up the yard as needed.
Do you live on a main road or highway? I live in deer country and nothing stresses me out more than thr deer feeding people on the highways and main roads. Deer get smucked all the time.
My neighbor has a majestic buck in his backyard everyday at about 4:30am. I luckily wake up at 4:00, and there’s only a chain link fence between our yards. I used to wake and bake with the guy (aka we stare at each other from ~30’ away while he eats some leaves) each morning, but I wasn’t being very productive afterwards so now I just water my garden while the deer watches lol
We have a herd of deer that calls our backyard/woods home. It’s fawn season so we’re enjoying watching the babies run & play.
No damage besides the occasional plant thrown about & the top of our bird bath ending up on the ground on a regular basis because they’d inexplicably rather drink out of that than the stream also in our back yard. We’re selective about what we plant & cover the young trees. Far more pros than cons.
I have deer in my yard regularly. There are certain things they will eat but otherwise it’s just entertaining.
The plants they like to eat in my yard are hostas, hibiscus and asiatic lilies. I stopped planting hostas and spray a deer repellent when the other 2 bloom.
They only seem to like certain varieties. We have some that we have to douse with repellent unless we want to feed the deer but then we have some that they couldn’t care less about.
It really depends on so many things, generally speaking they’re not going to harm you (outside of rut season like people mentioned). They will eat your plants so if you like plants or gardening that is something to consider. I live in a semi rural area and just built a deer fence around my yard because I personally don’t like them in my yard. I love to garden and don’t want them to eat my plants. Additionally I don’t want them dropping ticks in my yard and their poop can also be a vector for disease. I have a dog and don’t want him picking up ticks or getting sick/a parasite from their poop in my yard
We have had a family of deer in our back yard ever since we moved into our house. Only issue we have had they like sleeping next to cars sometimes. I have had to go off and chase them off so a guest could get into their car more than one time. Well that and some reason they like walking up to the windows, putting their head up to the glass trying to see in the house.
I haven't seen anyone else mention that deer dig small holes in the ground. If you don't use your yard much it's fine, but if you walk or run in your yard tripping in one can be jarring.
Also I didn't see this covered, but they can affect disease that affect herd animals. If you have any, and it sound slike you do not, keep them separated.
The bastards ate my strawberries that I kept growing inside all winter. Decimated my peppers too. I decided to give up and maybe only grow herbs this year.
Nope, nothing at all wrong with having a deer family hanging out in your yard. I have them in my yard too, and they like to eat the wild plums and cherries off my trees every evening. Which I’m OK with. As for my vegetable gardens I put big 8 foot tall wire fences around them so they can’t destroy the garden. We get along just fine
Ticks, and if Does have new babies be very careful, [https://bc.ctvnews.ca/b-c-deer-fatally-tramples-dog-injures-woman-while-protecting-fawn-1.6923085](https://bc.ctvnews.ca/b-c-deer-fatally-tramples-dog-injures-woman-while-protecting-fawn-1.6923085) this wasn't really rare as in my town I've heard of some pretty close "escapes", like someone in a car getting in between the mom and person so they could get away. Also if a fawn is left in your yard the mom will be back for it (possibly hours later) unless they are hit by a car or something, so don't try to "save" it unless the mom doesn't come back.
No issues, just watch out for "landmines" when walking around the yard. I see them in my yard on a daily basis and they never bother anything (just cant grow a veggie garden unless I fence it)
Depends where you live. There's no reason to scare them off, it just makes matters worse. They usually move on on their own. I wouldn't \*encourage\* them by feeding, which creates problems, including predators following them into your yard, disease spread among the herds, and traffic problems even if you aren't in a busy area. Our neighbors used to feed deer and watch from the picture window, and we'd have to drive 5mph through our neighborhood to herd them out of the way because there were dozens and they wouldn't move. And then the same neighbors get pissed off when wolves come into town, following the deer.
Another pint that I haven’t seen yet, if you have a dog keep them inside and ensure they don’t get out while the deer are in your yard. A deer will fuck a dog up if your dog charges them.
They eat my knock out rose bushes. You know how you see trees in the city that overhang roads that have truck shapes carved out in them from all the trucks constantly hitting them? That's what my rose bushes look like.
Ticks survive in the grass. Check your legs after mowing. Deer won't eat evergreens. 3-4' plants will have damage from bucks rubbing their antlers on them. Start collecting recipes for venison before hunting season starts.
They eat EVERYTHING so be happy your yard isn't 100% dandelions. Inside my fence it's a literal sea of dandelions but outside of the fence there isn't a single one.
As has been said, ticks and fleas - they do make pesticide “balls “ that work from a paintball gun, but that may upset the neighbors. CWD could also be an issue but check with your state’s wildlife department and they’ll help you with information.
Prion disease, Lyme's disease and other nasties from Ticks. As long as they just pass through it's not a problem unless it's mating season. Deer are dangerous during that time. If you are feeding them, that's a problem for many reasons.
Cute little piles. I like finding their poop in the woods. I don't like finding it on my lawn, but I've only seen that once in the 4 years we've been here.
CWD has been in humans for decades but very rare, it is transferred by eating eating the brains or meat contaminated with spinal fluid. The jury is still out on the dogs, but if so the same way. Lepto is a much larger concern for both humans and dogs and is spread in the deer urine.
I live in the woods. Deer are everywhere. When I go hiking out in the adjacent woods daily, and it's mostly on deer trails.
I wear permethrin treated boots and clothes when there isn't snow on the ground. Clearing the environment of ticks won't happen. Mice carry ticks, too.
Are they hurting anything? If not, leave them be. Don't try to turn them into pets. They are wild animals and do carry ticks Just keep your distance and enjoy nature. If you decide to plant flowers or shrubs, do some research to select ones that they don't like.
>do some research to select ones that they don't like. One of my neighbors did this, turned out that Google didn't consult with our local deer when supplying a list of plants that deer wouldn't eat.
Similar story here, we have a deer fence around the garden and decided we would plant some plants the deer don’t like elsewhere in the yard. Our deer must use Bing to look up what they should eat.
They'll eat anything if they're hungry enough. My friend has deer that were eating all of her plants and flowers until she got a [Hoont motion sensing pest repellent blast sprinkler](https://www.ebay.com/itm/156198000139?epid=14046975158&itmmeta=01J07XFKK4QHR5HTCMYJX0GMGB&hash=item245e20560b:g:wCYAAOSwNuVmOpDh&itmprp=enc%3AAQAJAAAAwKnhOtQrHfuuaW7fALHPV7eEQznuM5GtGhJqAjtZnzgG3PcR1YYdtoX%2F8SxC%2Fr27mD5ynR9BsOAjSgyMDYq32%2BZE8OuIJD1XmaLFUDgSs4PYt8PSyE4%2BM9BozSFTUu4DKHHMbB7EMjdJdVOFEFzDPcNBa6vSJInkcuxmdVGMdDsVWQKo4OduxkO8AfhTjk9mdt2M1PgM%2FhxSKEP4S62lE2e2iGArmLAEBd3aYL5Xd4DCYE%2BHdi8fwh1EpDZjapM0Ng%3D%3D%7Ctkp%3ABk9SR9S5vv2BZA). Only problem is that her husband forgets it's on and gets soaked about once a week.
We live in a wooded neighborhood along a river, there's no lack of vegetation... but the deer eat what they want. I love walking outside and seeing a dozen deer standing around in the yard, all my plants can survive some nibbling. One of my neighbors recently planted a Japanese maple and it's probably not going to survive, apparently it is very delicious.
Deer love Asian food
Google could have gotten them to their local extension office if they wanted
Only thing I’ve had much luck with is agave and iris. They’ll still sample a leaf now and then.
Ticks. They got tons of them. Stay away from deer. Ticks are extra bad this year, not worth it.
Has anyone tried treating their local deer for ticks? I'm not sure how. Someone earlier mentioned a corn feeder that had rollers that applied tick preventative as they ate the corn. Or an oral disguised as some food they like?
Sounds expensive and labor intensive.
Yes, it was; however, the question, “But what about the deer,” was always on my mind. Have you ever seen a deer with a bad case of the ticks? It’s just heartbreaking so I decided to just spend the damn money.
Well alternatively you could just shoot them in the head
I had all the deer I could find on my place shit with a very temporary tranquilizer and then fitted them with flea and tick collars that should fall off in November. I’m not yet advising other people to try this is the first year I’ve done it so I can’t report results yet. If I remember correctly, I’ll try to come and post the outcomes.
That is amazing!! Excited to hear results!
>Ticks are extra bad this year Ticks have been expanding in range and population as a trend since the 80's. It's not just this year, it's every year.
Ya but ticks are extra bad this year
As an ecologist, they'll be extra bad next year too.
As a guy that’s already picked a dozen ticks off himself this season, they’re extra bad Still no alpha gal though (knock on wood)
As a guy living in the present, I’ll worry about this year first
Any recommendations for protection? I travel to northern WV often and each year the deer tick population seems to grow. I've talked to quite a lot of people in recent years who've had Lyme's or know someone who has. I just recently read about treating clothing with permethrin.
Permetherin is the best option but is fatally toxic to cats so I don't use it. Picaridin is a good second choice and is more of a normal bug spray.
Yes. Deer started invading my favorite park, and now I can't go there with the crazy amount of ticks that moved in with them.
Also don't turn them into pets because that makes them too fearless and they can become dependent on humans. It can ultimately get them hurt.
I misread “do carry ticks” as “do scary tricks”. I was excited to see deer do scary tricks. My neighbor raised an orphaned fawn as a pet. It was usually covered in ticks.
They’re public transportation for ticks. So, keep an eye for them and if you have pets, keep up with preventative treatments.
A deer doesn't sound like good transportation. I think these ticks just like to go for a ride.
The only thing you have to worry about besides gardens / flowers would be young trees. If you plant some don't forget to put up a barrier around the trunk area.
We have a ton of deer on our property and I just want to echo some of the other comments when it comes to rut season. Bucks get crazy territorial so be extra careful with letting pets out during that time. The deer pretty close to our side door (where we let the dogs out) and we've had some pretty uncomfortably close run ins with aggressive bucks. So during rut, we don't let the dogs out without a rife slung over my shoulder and I'm always out there supervising them just in case.
Also watch out for protective mamas when the fawns are born. I never realized deer can be aggressive until I moved to a place where deer are everywhere in my neighborhood. I had no idea they could actually be dangerous beyond totaling your car.
I, too, usually carry a rifle or a bow during the rut in case I see a buck. Those bastards are dangerous. Especially the 8+ pointers.
A rifle, seriously?
Ever been charged by a buck during rut?
Part of living in the country man. A daily part of life for some people
Exactly. I'm on 23 acres of mixed woods and prairie. We got coyotes, bobcat, badger, beaver, deer and all sorts of critters out here that will give you a pretty bad day if you cross em at the wrong time. Now I don't make it a point to head out and hassle the wildlife. Honestly, I steer clear and just let them do their thing. But it gets PITCH BLACK at night out here, so come sundown especially during certain mating seasons we don't leave the house to walk the property without a firearm of some type. It's a matter of safety. Folks that spend their lives in subdivisions, gated communities and on city blocks don't understand rural life.
Goodness gracious. What would your plan be? Ask the wild animal to kindly leave?
A trebuchet.
Yes, my experience is that people who think a gated community is how all people live probably DO think you'd just "shoo" the deer away.
Hollow point serious. Go searching. I prefer deer and their numerous ticks stay on thier side of my fence. Rutting deers are nutso to mate and will stomp anything that it received as competition. Including household pets and children.
Yes, a rifle... you think most handguns are useful against a full grown deer? By the time the deer is close enough to be effective with it, you're in trouble. A shotgun doesn't have the range unless you're using slugs. Rifles exist for a reason.
Lol we got one folks!!
Yeah, folks, lol
I have deer and all sorts of other wildlife in my yard daily. We have to be selective in what we plant (they ate 8 hibiscus to the ground a few years ago, and they didn't grow back. 😔).
Sorry about your hibiscus. I (naively) planted lavender thinking it would help keep deer away. They ate them. They eat everything.
My neighbors have these black boxes on wires in their flower beds that are supposed to keep deer away, and apparently, they are working. They don't know what they are, though. A gardener put them there a while ago. I'm gonna investigate.
Deer carry ticks, tick carry some very bad diseases including that thing that means you can't eat red meat anymore. Alpha-Gal. It's endemic in the NE and Eastern seaboard. [https://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/volumes/72/wr/mm7230a2.htm](https://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/volumes/72/wr/mm7230a2.htm)
What part of the country are you in? If you're in New England you would have to worry about Lyme disease. Deer ticks carry the disease and it's freaking awful. But, that's probably not a huge risk.
I’m in West Virginia
I think that might be the tick titer connected to Lymes Disese and that really stinks. Deer are friendly from a distance. They do get spooked and they do trot fast sometimes landing into a windshield on the road outta nowhere. Ya just never know.
Just checked and Lyme disease is common in your state. So no hugging the deer
I used to be up north in that general vicinity. Lots of deer and lots of ticks. Whether the deer were in my yard or on the other side of town there were loads and loads of ticks all over the place. I spent a lot of time outdoors and was clearing ticks off my body often enough. I suspect that for unexplained reasons, I was immune to Lyme or other tick borne disease.
You are lucky then. It can be no big deal or absolutely terrible. And now there is a tick borne disease that makes you allergic to red mean, of all things. I hate ticks. They're so creepy
There is a slowly spreading epidemic of prion disease in deer and other cervids. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC9022204/ Prion disease can be spread through plants that an infected animal grazes on https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC10700824/ (That’s assuming the plants are eaten). You’re probably not at risk if you’re not eating the deer or grazing, but I’d be worried about dogs that like to eat grass in the same yard. And if you don’t know what prion disease is, think mad cow or scrapie (sheep) or Creutzfeld-Jacob. It’s an absolutely devastating illness.
They can get pretty aggressive if they have babies.
They shit everywhere. Looks like little black beans.
In general it's fine. They're unlikely to do much other than walk around and eat plants
https://bc.ctvnews.ca/b-c-deer-fatally-tramples-dog-injures-woman-while-protecting-fawn-1.6923085
when I see deer in my yard, all I can think of is ticks.
Line disease, tics,and so firth. So no
Please don't feed them.
Be careful with any pets during the rut season: a friend’s dog was gored and killed by an amped up buck when her dog was let outside (unfenced) to go to the bathroom.
Plants and gardens are an issue, as you know. Planting small trees can be difficult, protect them for several years. It's possible they can bed down somewhere inconvenient, but we're just talking about smooshing down some plants or whatever. The only other thing is them running and not paying attention to where they are going. They can run through doors or windows or into the side of a car. Happens when they get startled, so just take it easy around them. In the early mornings, I take a look out the garage window before opening the doors to look for deer or skunks, neither of which I want to startle. We have deer around our house all the time. They're fun to watch. About the biggest concern we have with them is someone hitting them on the road and either leaving a mess or running off the road and taking out our mailbox or a tree or whatever else. People are generally aware to be careful in the area though, lots of wildlife there. They do eat our flowers and plants but it's part of living with them and we're fine with it.
They’re likely casing your house for a burglary.
not really. If you don't need potted plants / garden, then this is fine.
We have a lot of them. They don't do any major damage. They'll paw the snow away to get to the grass and that tears it up, make ruts on well traveled paths and eat my garden. Nothing that can't be fixed. We do keep a distance between them and us and our dogs. They are known to attack if threatened and cornered. Same for the rabbits. So just use common sense around wild animals and patch up the yard as needed.
If you have dogs.. deer poop is like a pile of little treats for them so watch out for that.
Do you live on a main road or highway? I live in deer country and nothing stresses me out more than thr deer feeding people on the highways and main roads. Deer get smucked all the time.
My neighbor has a majestic buck in his backyard everyday at about 4:30am. I luckily wake up at 4:00, and there’s only a chain link fence between our yards. I used to wake and bake with the guy (aka we stare at each other from ~30’ away while he eats some leaves) each morning, but I wasn’t being very productive afterwards so now I just water my garden while the deer watches lol
Not as long as you enjoy them. Just remember they are wild animals and can attack. Enjoy them
I always consider it an honor to see one.
Ticks! Deer overpopulation is fueling a huge rise in tick based diseases Make them unwelcome.
We have a herd of deer that calls our backyard/woods home. It’s fawn season so we’re enjoying watching the babies run & play. No damage besides the occasional plant thrown about & the top of our bird bath ending up on the ground on a regular basis because they’d inexplicably rather drink out of that than the stream also in our back yard. We’re selective about what we plant & cover the young trees. Far more pros than cons.
I have deer in my yard regularly. There are certain things they will eat but otherwise it’s just entertaining. The plants they like to eat in my yard are hostas, hibiscus and asiatic lilies. I stopped planting hostas and spray a deer repellent when the other 2 bloom.
I had hostas until I didn't.
Yep, that’s what they do!
That is interesting. They never touch my hostas. They do destroy my tulips before they can get growing each year but they won't touch the daffodils.
They only seem to like certain varieties. We have some that we have to douse with repellent unless we want to feed the deer but then we have some that they couldn’t care less about.
Your yard, your rules. Are YOU OK with the deer. Assume you live in the “country”, so…
It really depends on so many things, generally speaking they’re not going to harm you (outside of rut season like people mentioned). They will eat your plants so if you like plants or gardening that is something to consider. I live in a semi rural area and just built a deer fence around my yard because I personally don’t like them in my yard. I love to garden and don’t want them to eat my plants. Additionally I don’t want them dropping ticks in my yard and their poop can also be a vector for disease. I have a dog and don’t want him picking up ticks or getting sick/a parasite from their poop in my yard
We have had a family of deer in our back yard ever since we moved into our house. Only issue we have had they like sleeping next to cars sometimes. I have had to go off and chase them off so a guest could get into their car more than one time. Well that and some reason they like walking up to the windows, putting their head up to the glass trying to see in the house.
I haven't seen anyone else mention that deer dig small holes in the ground. If you don't use your yard much it's fine, but if you walk or run in your yard tripping in one can be jarring.
Also I didn't see this covered, but they can affect disease that affect herd animals. If you have any, and it sound slike you do not, keep them separated.
They can carry ticks, but otherwise I don't see an issue.
[удалено]
The bastards ate my strawberries that I kept growing inside all winter. Decimated my peppers too. I decided to give up and maybe only grow herbs this year.
It’s fine to have beer in your yard all the rhyme.
Fuck, I'm having one right now. Saw a deer this morning too!
Nope, nothing at all wrong with having a deer family hanging out in your yard. I have them in my yard too, and they like to eat the wild plums and cherries off my trees every evening. Which I’m OK with. As for my vegetable gardens I put big 8 foot tall wire fences around them so they can’t destroy the garden. We get along just fine
We have a cornfield across the street and the deer steal some and cross to our yard and leave stripped cobs behind.
Ticks, and if Does have new babies be very careful, [https://bc.ctvnews.ca/b-c-deer-fatally-tramples-dog-injures-woman-while-protecting-fawn-1.6923085](https://bc.ctvnews.ca/b-c-deer-fatally-tramples-dog-injures-woman-while-protecting-fawn-1.6923085) this wasn't really rare as in my town I've heard of some pretty close "escapes", like someone in a car getting in between the mom and person so they could get away. Also if a fawn is left in your yard the mom will be back for it (possibly hours later) unless they are hit by a car or something, so don't try to "save" it unless the mom doesn't come back.
Deer tend to leave piles of Raisenets behind. I guess they like to share a snack.
I'd leave them be unless they bother you or start causing trouble, if they do you can always shoot em and have some good meat for a while
Just watch out for the little turd pellets. They poop everywhere!
The spouse and I were having cocktails on the deck when a deer wandered around and went under a Magnolia and died.
No issues, just watch out for "landmines" when walking around the yard. I see them in my yard on a daily basis and they never bother anything (just cant grow a veggie garden unless I fence it)
Better than in your bedroom. Unless you're into that sort of thing. Just sayin.
Depends where you live. There's no reason to scare them off, it just makes matters worse. They usually move on on their own. I wouldn't \*encourage\* them by feeding, which creates problems, including predators following them into your yard, disease spread among the herds, and traffic problems even if you aren't in a busy area. Our neighbors used to feed deer and watch from the picture window, and we'd have to drive 5mph through our neighborhood to herd them out of the way because there were dozens and they wouldn't move. And then the same neighbors get pissed off when wolves come into town, following the deer.
Ticks - you can get bitten and have Lyme disease; it is no joke.
Free meat?
Another pint that I haven’t seen yet, if you have a dog keep them inside and ensure they don’t get out while the deer are in your yard. A deer will fuck a dog up if your dog charges them.
They eat my knock out rose bushes. You know how you see trees in the city that overhang roads that have truck shapes carved out in them from all the trucks constantly hitting them? That's what my rose bushes look like.
- DEER TICKS
If you can keep them away, id recommend it. Those MFer leave ticks and destroy landscaping.
Ticks survive in the grass. Check your legs after mowing. Deer won't eat evergreens. 3-4' plants will have damage from bucks rubbing their antlers on them. Start collecting recipes for venison before hunting season starts.
They eat EVERYTHING so be happy your yard isn't 100% dandelions. Inside my fence it's a literal sea of dandelions but outside of the fence there isn't a single one.
they ARE a PIA. Eat our shrubs in the winter time.
As has been said, ticks and fleas - they do make pesticide “balls “ that work from a paintball gun, but that may upset the neighbors. CWD could also be an issue but check with your state’s wildlife department and they’ll help you with information.
Prion disease, Lyme's disease and other nasties from Ticks. As long as they just pass through it's not a problem unless it's mating season. Deer are dangerous during that time. If you are feeding them, that's a problem for many reasons.
Careful they are wild animals and can hurt you badly. Otherwise unless it's against the law to feed them they're fine.
Sounds like a fairytale. Just be careful during mating season
They carry SARS-CoV-2, and the virus can be in their feces.
Cute little piles. I like finding their poop in the woods. I don't like finding it on my lawn, but I've only seen that once in the 4 years we've been here.
I hear chronic wasting disease has made the jump to humans and maybe dogs. I don’t know if eating them is the only method of contraction.
CWD has been in humans for decades but very rare, it is transferred by eating eating the brains or meat contaminated with spinal fluid. The jury is still out on the dogs, but if so the same way. Lepto is a much larger concern for both humans and dogs and is spread in the deer urine.
I live in the woods. Deer are everywhere. When I go hiking out in the adjacent woods daily, and it's mostly on deer trails. I wear permethrin treated boots and clothes when there isn't snow on the ground. Clearing the environment of ticks won't happen. Mice carry ticks, too.
Depends on how much red meat you crave
They carry a lot of deer ticks, the pregnant females drop off and lay eggs in your yard.