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| Volume XXIII Number 10 | July 25, 2003 |
By Debi Lee
BIG CYPRESS — Early one day this spring Safari Guide Rylan Kirkland was out on tour when he happened upon a white tail doe and her fawn. He stopped the swamp buggy to allow his passengers an extended viewing. Suddenly a native Florida Panther bounded into the clearing and leapt upon the mother deer, quickly taking her life. The frightened fawn ran off into the woods. Rylan reported the situation to management and continued on tour with his awed passengers who had been witness to the wild in action.
Jodi Reynolds was sent out into the park to remove the fallen deer. She found it lying several yards off to the side of the trail and stepped down off the front-end loader she was driving to move it within reach of the bucket. As she turned back, there was the panther obstructing her path, expressing concern with the disposition of his meal. Jodi stealthily backed away and radioed for assistance.
Mary Tigertail and Sherry Hubbel quickly boarded a swamp buggy and rode to the rescue, warding off the panther to allow Jodi access to the front-end loader. The three returned to the compound leaving the panther to its spoils.
At the end of the tour day Kimberly Royal and Jacob Osceola Jr. went out with Jonathan Vasquez and Michael Schambers to investigate the site. While looking unsuccessfully for the body of the mother deer, they did find her fawn nestled beneath a palmetto frond, silent and still as is instinctive for survival. Estimating his age to be but several days and in definite need of nurturing, they scooped him up and carried him to his new home.
He was so tiny and had such big ears that they decided to name “Che-shee”, which is the Seminole word for ‘mouse’. Mouse was given over to Debi Lee for surrogate mothering and took up residence in her Safari cabin. Kitchen and bath were partitioned off as easy to clean “Mouse habitat” and the rest of the cabin was “Mouse-proofed” with regard to his nibbling tendencies. It took some experimenting until just the right formula was concocted for his 4X daily bottle feedings.
After the first week, Debi began to walk him on a leash to the office with her each morning where he spent the day beneath her desk. When and wherever she would move about Mouse would closely follow. Soon, a cabled run was set up for him in his chosen grassy area and Debi had only to turn around in her chair to watch over him through the window. Lying hidden and quiet beneath a willow, he would only come out when his “momma” called.
At workday’s end they would walk back to the cabin with Mouse browsing along the way. Taste testing is the focal point in his life, whether natural vegetation or the fruits and vegetables that Debi cuts up for him each day.
Each evening they go walking around the Safari compound on extended browsing and discovery expeditions. Mouse’s favorite foods are broccoli, carrots, bananas, grapes, oak leaves and seed heads of grasses. He is also quite fond of specially formulated deer pellets and of course, his bottle. Five months is the expected age for weaning.
Debi has already weaned him from the leash, stretching the motherly apron strings. He began spending the day on exhibit with two other Safari babies, pygmy goats “Peanut” and “Butter”. He has become fairly proficient in head butting in addition to his instinctive stomping kick. The goats often accompany Mouse and Debi on their evening walks.
Mouse now spends days and nights with the goats in view of “momma’s” open door. They have other babies in residence with them; “Q-tip” the lamb and 8 newly hatched chicks. Mother hen chose the location for laying her eggs and now all are working out their space requirements among other roommate issues.
Mouse roams freely for an hour each morning staying within reach of Debi’s call. After some exploratory foraging, he comes to rest waiting for bottle and feeding. Evening jaunts evidence more action and speed. He will often run lengths or circles of 100 yards or more in mere seconds, to and from “mom” 4 to 5 times in a row. He kicks and jumps and prances in play, spindly legged with white tail flagging.
His big ears are alert to every sound. He is usually approachable by individuals, but tends to get nervous around groups and bounds away when feeling surrounded.
Mouse likes to stay out later than his roommates, nestled in the grass enjoying the mysteries of the night. “Mom” comes to tuck him safely away from any lurking predators shortly after his last bottle, just before she goes to bed.
Mouse recently introduced himself to a young female fallow deer named “Tink” who also resides at Safari. She seemed quite pleased as she pranced up and down the length of her enclosure. The two are living together in a permanent exhibit at the park.
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