Princess Peanut

Peanut is a small doe that is approximately 5 years old. When she first arrived for the winter supplemental feeding as a fawn the previous owner was able to feed her by hand and that is how she preferred to be fed, avoiding the crowds of other deer that were so much more agressive. She really enjoyed eating out of a cupped hand or a saucepan, often ignoring food that was poured on the ground. She does not live on our property often arriving in mid to late January for the winter months.

Peanut really doesn't hang out with any other deer in particular, so we have to pay really close attention to which fawn(s) may be hers. The photo above is of her and Patches; her fawn during the 2020 season.

This is our typical view of Peanut. I found that she absolutely adores acorns so beginning the fall of 2020, I began collecting them as they dropped from the trees out in the woods, collecting many 5 gallon buckets full. When she is feeling well fed, she will accept the acorns but spit out the shells and just eat the nut meats. During hard and long winters she isn't as picky and eats the entire acorn, shell and all. 

Peanut does not live on our property, so in the spring after the snow has melted to just a few inches in the woods, she will give us a long hard stare and wander away. For a few weeks leading up to that day, she will become more and more distant and "wild." It isn't until the next day when she doesn't show up for feed that you realize that she is gone until the following January, and hope that she stays safe until then.