The Scottish SPCA is reminding the public to take care around fawns after a number came in to its care after being uplifted by well-meaning members of the public.
Of the four fawns that were admitted to the National Wildlife Rescue Centre from May 18 to 23 , three had been taken from their natural environment.
In many cases, people mistake the animals as abandoned by their parents when in fact they have been left while mum forages for food or is looking for a new nesting site.
Sadly, one of the fawns has already had to be put to sleep on medical grounds as the young deer was showing signs of severe stress, also known as capture myopathy.
The charity’s #WildlifeWise campaign was launched to stop wild animals becoming orphans unnecessarily. The aim is to educate the public on when they should contact them about young wildlife.
The charity is asking people to stay a safe distance away from fawns and not to contact its helpline unless the young deer is showing signs of needing assistance.
A mother will return to the fawn, sometimes after several hours, and feed it – so if someone does return later and the fawn does not show any signs of needing help then it should be left alone.
Wildlife manager at the National Wildlife Rescue Centre, Steve Gray, said people had the best intentions but removing wild animals from their natural habitat could do more harm than good.
“Deer suffer from such extreme stress levels, more so than many other wild animals, that in some cases it can be life-threatening,” he added.
“By removing a fawn when there is no need to, it can cause great distress to mother and baby.
“In many cases, a fawn will not run away if approached, especially if mum has returned and fed them as they will be feeling sleepy. People can mistake this as a sign a fawn needs help when it does not.
“We’ve had instances where people have phoned our animal helpline about a fawn and have chosen to ignore our advice and uplifted the animal anyway. Under no circumstances should people take a fawn in to their home.
“These are wild animals and their inherent instinct is to flee from humans. These are not domesticated or tame animals who are used to human interaction so trying to pet or comfort them only causes more stress.
“Sadly, this increased stress has caused fawns and deer who have been brought in to our care to die.
“Our dedicated teams work incredibly hard to rehabilitate these fawns and get them ready to be released back in to the wild. This usually involves regular bottle feeding all through the night.
“As incredible as our wildlife team is, there is no substitute for an animal staying with its family in the wild.”
If you come across a fawn, the advice is:
- Stay well back and do not alert it to your presence. Monitor the fawn over several hours.
- Make sure dogs are kept on a lead around any wild animals.
- If in doubt, stay well back and call the Scottish SPCA’s helpline on 03000 999 999 for advice.
- Only intervene if the fawn is injured or the mother is deceased nearby.
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