Introducing . . . the Apple Herd!

Hi, Spirit here. I'd like to introduce you to the resident deer who frequent my backyard. The Apple Herd is named after the herd's matriarch - Apple, one of the most beautiful does I have ever seen . She comes by every day to say "hello" and has been introducing us to her new fawns every spring for the past several years.

When on my property, the Apple Herd is protected from being hunted. They have plenty of food to eat and a healthy amount of water from a babbling creek that runs through my backyard. But deer in the wild like the Apple Herd face numerous natural and human-caused challenges, including parasites, harsh cold winters, destruction of habitat, hunting, and collisions with automobiles.

As an example, Apple's oldest son, Bucky, who was born in 2021, sustained a severe fracture to his back leg in 2023 due to a car accident that almost cost him his life. Nubs, who was born to Apple in 2022, has a condition known as arterial worms, which causes his mouth to swell and stunts his antler growth. I'll tell you more about these two bucks another time.

Not all of Apple's offspring are as unfortunate as Bucky and Nubs, however. Nicky, Nubs' twin sister, visits us daily with her mom and her younger twin siblings, Pebbles and Bam Bam, who were born in 2023. And we all have welcomed Apple's most recent fawn from 2024 - an adorable little girl named Grace!

I am so very lucky to share my life with such beautiful and gentle creatures. If you've had encounters with deer like the Apple Herd, please add your story to the comments below. And help spread the word about the struggles of deer in the wild by being a Kindred Spirit of Peace . . . like me!

P.S. Check out my video about the Apple Herd, which is part of my Golden Karma Trail Tails video series!