We heard a fawn bleating when we were out in the field yesterday morning. We found it, left it alone, and avoided that area the rest of the day, hoping mama would come back.
When I went out to lock up the chickens, hubby went to se if the fawn was still there. It was. Its back end was down in a wood chuck burrow; maybe it got stuck? Anyway, it had been there for about 10-12 hours, and no mama. We brought it inside, as it was supposed to get down to the low 40s last night (it did). The neighbor's dog roams at night, and we have a lot of raccoons and possums.
Fawns have no smell, but something would have found it, I think. A tiny fawn at 43 degrees had no chance.
Hubby said it could barely lift its head, and its bleats were weak. We put it in a small dog crate, and I put the chick heater plate just outside the crate, against its back. We tried giving it some sugar water,* but it wouldn't even try to suck on the dropper he offered. I had put a blanket under and over it, covered the crate with towels.
No, it didn't survive the night. We will bury it out in the field today.
*I called an animal rescue and learned some interesting information. It's a good thing it didn't take any of the warm milk we offered; cow's milk is "a death sentence" to fawns. Goat's milk would have been ok.
I also learned that, because of Chronic Wasting Disease, we would not have been permitted to take the fawn more than 15 miles from our property. Well, that surely limits the animal rehab places we could take it! To exactly... zero.