Just found out deer can remember you for years and hold grudges

I was reading some random wildlife study last night from a university in Pennsylvania and stumbled across a fact that still bugs me. Turns out deer have really good long term memory, like for 3 to 5 years, and they can recognize individual humans by sight and smell. If you chase one off your property or yell at it, it will remember you and avoid your yard specifically, but also might come back to eat your hostas during the night out of spite. I went down a rabbit hole after that and found documented cases where deer avoided someone's garden for months after getting sprayed with a hose, but then targeted that same person's flower bed when they planted new stuff. Now I look at the doe that hangs around my backyard totally different. Has anyone else noticed weird behavior from deer that lines up with this?

2 comments

2 Comments

william40712d agoMost Upvoted

Honestly Ive dealt with this exact thing. The doe that lives back in the woods by my place has memorized my schedule and knows exactly when I let my dog out in the morning. She used to come eat my tulips every spring until I chased her off a few times with a broom, now she just stares at me from the treeline and waits for me to go inside before she sneaks in and hits my hostas. Last fall I set up a camera and caught her walking past every other garden on the street just to come poop in my yard, I swear she did it on purpose. Tbh your best bet is to mix up your routine and keep them guessing, theyre way smarter than people give them credit for.

clairem3812d ago

@william407 I think you're giving that deer way too much credit. It's just looking for food.