Is it possible
Whitetail Deer
Contributors to this thread:
Supposedly a gentlemen hit a doe and killed her. Deciding to keep it he started to gut her. When he opened her up he found these. Can this be possible??
Personally I've never seen more than two fetuses from one doe. Each year we age the fetuses of January bow killed does using the QDMA aging system at the place I hunt in the Midwest. There could be more than two but personally I've never seen it. C
I have seen three on two separate occasions on January bow killed does in maryland. As charlie says two are the norm.
I have seen one or two many times. The norm. I have seen three quite often. I have seen four a couple of times. I believe it is possible to have multiple fetuses but I don't think they would all survive. It may even be possible that they die in the wound and get absorbed similar to what female bass eggs do if a male is not present to fertilize the eggs. I am not sure but nature is always questioning our thoughts.
I have seen 3 a couple times as I work for a local municipality and respond to quite a few deer/car collisions. I would say most anything is possible but that is not likely!! Scooby
i bet some of those would be absorbed by the doe during the process.
Kentuckbowhunter I was thinking the same thing until I saw ShawnM Post above. But Shans post could be fawn from a different doe who was killed?
I have seen 3 fawns plenty of times but I have never seen more than that.
now that's going to be tender .
Wow shawnm, thanks for sharing pix and info...
Learned a long time ago never to say never when it comes to whitetails...
Triplets are not that uncommon around here, I see them annually while their still in spots... Right now have a mature whitetail doe behind the house traveling with four fawns, three doe fawns and a button, but being this late in the season, doubt they are all hers... Likely hooked up after their mother or mothers got whacked... Have seen this scenario before, one year 5 fawns and a mature doe during late winter, but after seeing shawnm's pix am beginning to wonder...
I believe it was Bowriter John who recently posted pix of doe with four fawns... Maybe he'll chime in...
I live where Deer frequent our bird feeders almost daily year round & we kinda get to know the Moms & their young. In 20 years living here we have seen 3 set of triplets & "lots" of twins. This year we had 3 Moms, 2 sets of twins & 1 single. We have seen 1 Mom show up & all 5 young with her & the other 2 Moms never show but never 2 days in a row.. The Bucks Stay away & we glimpse them once in a great while.
Just depends on the condition of the doe, really... In farm country, I guess quadruplets are not that uncommon after a mild winter, but once the dam gets stressed, she'll resorb them 'til she's down to what she can support....
So... Common, NOT! Possible... Well, a sow can have 15 or so, right?
I saw a patient the other day with two uteruses and two sets of ovaries/fallopian tubes. If this anomaly can happen with humans it can probably happen with deer. Three in each uterus would make six. Whether she could have carried them to term is another question. Highly unlikely they were all from one doe, but possible I'd say.
Pronghorns do this. They have 2 uterus and 6 plus eggs that get fertilized, the one that grows the fastest in each is the one that survives until birth. They just drop out the rest is my understanding on it. Any chance that is what we are looking at?
This doe had 4, most I've ever seen. She lived in a Pittsburgh city park with very little browse because they don't allow hunting and the deer population is about 10x what it should be. Pretty much every deer I've ever seen there is bone thin malnourished. Watched them all summer as I trained for my elk hunt there, they were practically tame.
Anything is possible with nature but as stated already a few prob would have been absorbed during the process, more than likely why we rarely see a mom with no more than 4 at a time.
Good opinions guys.. I like to hear others reactions to this. It sure did catch me off guard.
Never heard of a deer birthing more than 3.
Unless you know the person who allegedly hit the deer and gutted her, I say no way.
So much phony crap out there on the Internet. We've all seen the same giant deer pics sent by a friend, allegedly hit by car right nearby. Problem is that same deer was hit "nearby" all over the friggin' country.
shawnm's Link
3 is my record on crown-rump studies......You can quickly see why shooting does is a never ending proposition
Very cool!! I would say that it very well could be true given the time in gestation yet. -I would highly doubt that all would make it and in fact would bet against it heavily. Growing up we had a neighbor who had a doe that gave birth to four, which all made it. I've only encountered triplets twice in the wild.
Deer in a pen with unlimited nutrition are a different animal than a wild deer.
Ya they are but what I'm trying to point out is its a possibility and could happen?? Gives the guys on this site more of a reason to wrap it up!!! Lol
shawnm - I got theories, but still waiting on the veterinarians response,,, when they get the time...8^)
I've got a doe behind my house that raised three, two years ago. I believe she didn't raise any this year, every time I see her she has her two year and half old does and most of the time her year and half old buck, weird.
I've seen triplets many times. Never remember four. God bless men
Six that's incredible, the most I have seen is four and that was last year on different occasions and the only one with four that I have ever seen in Manitoba. I could not get a trail pic of them all together
I've only seen a doe with triplets one time. Lots with twins. It always bothers me a little bit when I gut a doe in January and see the fetuses. Not totally sure why.
Apauls.... that just ain't right! :-)