Boys Just Want to Have Fun

Boy deer and girl deer don't want anything to do with each other except during the fall breeding season.  The rest of the year, the boys hang out with other boys and don't display nearly as much aggression as they do in the fall because, well, they're not horny.  Their antlers fall off in the early winter and new ones grow back during the summer.  During this time, it is said that the bucks are "in velvet".  That's because the growing antlers are covered with a velvety looking membrane that has blood vessels in it and is quite fragile.  This velvet dries up and falls off in early autumn and the antlers harden into bone.  Then the bucks start to get antsy, sparing with each other, shredding the bark of trees, and rooting up patches in the ground.  These "buck rubs" and "scrapes" may impress other bucks and deer hunters, but the does aren't remotely interested yet.  As the season progresses, though, a doe may visit a scrape and piss on it, which is the closest thing deer have to sending love letters.  Each doe will only be in heat (estrus) for a few days and, after that, it's "Good bye Charley!"  All the does don't come into heat at once, and each one is quickly abandoned afterwards as her boyfriend goes searching for a new love interest.

The fawns are born about six months later and, as their due date draws near, the does become territorial, driving all other deer away, including any children from previous marriages that might still be hanging around.  When her new baby is about a month old, Mamma mellows out a bit and will begin to allow her other kids to rejoin the entourage.  By this time, the boy children may have drifted away and decided to hang out with other guys, who are relatively docile this time of year because, like I said, they're not horney.  Since they take no part in child rearing, the bucks don't need as much quality food as the does, so they are not interested in fighting with some cranky mother over grazing rights.

Here's a new article about those citizen militias I was telling you about the other day:
https://a.msn.com/r/2/BBQ1IPk?m=en-us&referrerID=InAppShare 

11/24/18  This just in:  https://a.msn.com/r/2/BBQ2WME?m=en-us&referrerID=InAppShare
This sounds somewhat like a proposal I made awhile back.  I am surprised that Mexico is agreeing to it, but then it's not a done deal yet.