How to Rescue a Fawn
It is not uncommon to find young fawns lying alone in a field or even your front yard. The fawn may appear to be orphaned, but it is not. Mother deer settle their fawns into quiet areas and leave them. Later, she comes back to her baby. The mother does not stay with the fawn because she doesn't want to draw predators to it, but she is close by.
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Instructions
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Leave the fawn where it is when you find it. Do not take the fawn home. The mother is close by and your presence is keeping her away from her baby. Stay as far away from the fawn as possible so the mother can return to it.
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Check the spot the next day and chances are good the fawn will be gone. You might find the fawn is still in the same general area but is moved to another spot. This does not mean the fawn is alone. Often the mother settles her baby in the same area for several days, just moving it a few feet.
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Locate a wildlife rehabilitator to advise you about the fawn if the fawn is injured, or if you find a fawn that is lying next to a dead mother. In these cases, the fawn might need human help and intervention. A wildlife rehabilitator knows how to care for the fawn without turning it into a pet and appropriately release it back into the wild. Check your local yellow pages for a wildlife rehabilitator in your area, or look for one on the Internet.
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Call your local animal shelter's 24 hour hotline if you can not locate a wildlife rehabilitator in your area or if they are closed. The animal shelter typically has a means of lotacting these people 24 hours a day.
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Tips & Warnings
If you are in an emergency situation where you have to feed a fawn, the formula you give to him should be one designed for goats or lambs. Deer are more closely related to these animals than they are to cows.
Never give a fawn cow's milk or formula, dog food, or any other form of food. If you have located an injured or sick fawn and you are staying with her until the wildlife rehabilitator gets to the scene, it is best not to offer the fawn anything. If you feel she needs a drink, it is alright to put down a bowl of water.
In most states it is illegal to keep a wild animal as a pet, which is what you are doing if you take the fawn home.
