Fawns – The Gift of Spring

A Doe’s Nutrition Plays A Vital Role In Offspring Survival

By R.G. Bernier

During the previous three years I have conducted an extensive research project, which included daily observations of the autumn rut, winter severity index and then followed up by monitoring spring fawn births. At the outset, it was meant to collect data to substantiate a theory on the timing of the whitetail’s breeding cycle. But along the way, some rather incredible experiences, interesting sights and a greater knowledge about the secretive life of the whitetail has burgeoned. Of equal value was recognizing how vital a doe’s nutrition becomes throughout her pregnancy and its relationship to birthing strong, healthy fawns.

The Three Trimesters Of A Doe’s Pregnancy

As is the case with all expectant mothers, bearing young is not an easy proposition. Unlike humans where doctors, through prenatal care, oversee the pregnant female during their entire nine-month ordeal, including labor and the birth itself, whitetails must rely completely on maternal instincts.

A doe’s gestation period is between 195-202 days or roughly 6 1/2 months. She is carrying her developing fetus through the winter months, which can prove to be some of the harshest times in a calendar year. For the whitetail, the first and last stages of pregnancy are the most critical. If a prospective mother becomes severally stressed nutritionally, she will ultimately either bear underweight fawns or, in extreme cases, she will absorb dead embryos to save her own life.

The struggles of winter traditionally begin in early January with deep snow, cold temperatures and limited forage, making it essential for the doe to be in tip-top shape as she enters this 100-day stretch. The greater the fat content layered beneath her coat, the better suited she becomes to withstand any lean times that are sure to lie ahead.

But fat content can only carry a deer just so long. Deer on poor diets consume on average 3.5 pounds of browse per day whereas those animals benefiting from a moderate to ideal winter diet will consume 4.8 pounds of browse per day. Despite however plentiful or nutritious the wintering whitetails rations become, a certain percentage of a deer’s body weight will surely be depleted by the time the snow pack melts and the animal is at last freed from Old Man Winter’s forceful grip.

Whitetails are eating machines and never more so than following the winter season. They are quick to locate the first green plant life of spring and gravitate voraciously to the source. The well being of a doe’s forth-coming offspring hinges on her ability to ingest highly nutritious feed during this, the final trimester. It is at this critical stage when the fawn’s growth and development within the womb becomes greatly influenced by its mother’s nutritional intake of protein. When nutrients are limited during the last third of gestation, one member of twins tends to receive a greater share of the nourishment.

According to deer research biologist John Ozoga, “Pregnancy typically increases the need for protein. If the diet is inadequate, the mother sacrifices her bones and body tissues to nourish her fetus. After prolonged malnutrition, however, the mother’s reserves are drained and her fetus suffers the consequences.”

The Strain Of Pregnancy

      As labor approaches, the doe temporarily separates herself from the rest of her family, driving away her fawns from the previous year. She will begin to emit sporadic grunts, lick at her flanks and back end. She will become increasingly restless and uncomfortable, bedding and rising repeatedly. Once her water breaks and the clear mucus appears, the birthing process begins. It becomes an agonizing struggle for the doe as she diligently works at pushing forth this new life. Once the fawn hits the ground, a mother’s work really begins. Despite the exhausting process of birthing, particularly if there is more than one fawn, she must now meticulously lick and clean the infant and completely ingest all of the remains before finally relaxing herself.

The Importance Of A Doe’s Milk

The first and most important order of business for the new arrival is its initial feeding, which generally occurs within the first hour after birth. The doe’s milk, known as colostrum, is thick, rich, sticky and yellow in appearance. This formula is vitally important to the fawn as it contains immunoproteins-antibodies that prevent disease. Initially, the doe’s milk contains 12 percent butterfat but after approximately three weeks of nursing the butterfat content is reduced to eight percent. A doe will produce between 1 1/2 and two quarts of milk per day. Her diet will affect the amount of milk she can produce but has less effect on the quality.

For those mother deer who bear the stigma of being “poor mothers” – an attribute assigned to them for seemingly ignoring their young, despite the little tyke’s heart-wrenching pleas to be fed – is, in reality, an erroneous brand.

These non-lactating does have a condition known as “Maternal Rejection Syndrome.” Michigan researchers Ed Langenau and John Lerg substantiated an explanation for this abandonment phenomenon. It stems from the insufficient production of a hormone known as prolactin. This hormone is produced by the pituitary gland and is responsible for inducing milk production and the promotion of maternal instincts. Much like humans, even whitetails develop chemical deficiencies or imbalances that can greatly affect their normalcy.

Nutritive Failure

Ozoga, who after studying the findings of another noted biologist from Michigan, Louis Verme, came to this conclusion with regard to fawn mortality: “Fawns born alive generally died because of four kinds of nutritive failure: poor weakened condition; too small to reach a doe’s teats; were not permitted to nurse; and mothers did not produce milk.” Any way you slice it, the fawns’ survivability after birth is in direct relation to the mothers spring diet preceding the delivery.

Here in the Northeast, the winter of ‘03 was long and cold with an above average accumulation of snow that lasted well into the spring. One group of does that I monitored were relegated to a moderate diet throughout the winter months and due to the late spring green-up, had little time to add protein to their diet before birthing.

In two cases where each doe gave birth to twins, three of the fawns didn’t survive. The first doe, which gave birth on June 3, delivered what appeared to be a healthy fawn and then birthed an undeveloped fetus. The initial offspring, which couldn’t have weighed more than five pounds at birth, died within the first 24 hours due to a weakened condition.

In the second case, the doe birthed twins on June 16. The first fawn was a bit larger and more robust than the second, but both appeared to be in fine shape. Seventy-two hours later, I found the smaller of the two fawns deceased, due to what I believe to be the results of his sibling receiving a greater share of mother’s nourishment while in the womb.

Healthier Fawns Equal Healthier Adult Deer

Let me assure you, there is nothing that will tear at the heart of even the most hardened person than observing one of nature’s newest spotted arrivals in the throes of death. Trust me, it leaves one feeling quite desolate, as there is nothing that can be done to reverse the inevitable. With that said, how can we can help insure a healthier recruitment of fawns each year, especially when we have no control of winter’s severity?

It seems our answer reverts back to the whitetail’s groceries, and the nutritive value they contain. When provided a diet of more than 13 percent protein, pregnant does rarely lose one of their babies due to nutritive failure. On the other hand, the greater the percentage drops in their protein levels, the more susceptible she is to losing her newborns.

The best known source of increasing a deer’s dietary intake of higher protein values is planting food plots. It is common knowledge that, no matter where a resident deer lives, they can usually only derive six to 10 percent protein from natural browse. However, a plot of ground turned up, fertilized and planted with Imperial Whitetail Clover or Alfa-Rack can provide the animals with the protein necessary to insure their young are born healthy; and this benefit is available to them when they most need it.

By assisting the doe when the greatest demand is placed upon her body, the intuitive land manager is investing in healthier deer, which will eventually pay dividends of bigger bucks and better antler growth.