Breeding Season

It’s that time of the year again: Nature is turning into a nursery!

Spring is the beginning of breeding and rearing time for many wild animals in which they look for a calm and protected environment to raise their young ones. Disturbances can change their behavior pattern, and it could lead to neglecting of the offspring in extreme cases. The local hunting community therefore is appealing to everyone to stay on the paths if they walk in the forests or through fields. People walking their dogs are asked to keep them on a leash to stop them from impulse hunting. The President of the hunting community appeals to the people by saying “In every dog there is a wolf. They have a hunting instinct no matter how good they were trained.” Dogs hunting on an instinct would be a great disturbance and could lead to neglecting of the offspring.

Another important thing to know when walking around at this time of the year is that many animals leave their offspring in protected places while gathering food. The young ones are sometimes alone for most of the day, and hikers might mistake the animals as lost and left behind. That is not the case. Many furry parents are close by and just hiding from the human scent. If you come across such an animal, do not try to pet it and remove yourself from the place quickly and quietly. The offspring might be neglected if the parents smell human scent on them and can no longer recognize them as theirs.

Bunnies and deer are only some of the animals who leave their offspring in protected hollows in the ground or in areas that are shielded. If you are not sure if the animal is just waiting or has been neglected, the right thing to do is to contact the local hunting community and they will check on it. Please do not act on your own as it could lead to neglected offspring. Contact GACO if you need to get in touch with the local hunting community.

Many communities use small drones, or unmanned aerial systems, to scan fields for young animals before farmers begin plowing. If you see one overhead early in the morning, there’s no need to worry. Fawns and other offspring often remain motionless in the middle of a field and can be injured by a plow. In some areas, volunteers go out at dawn to collect young animals in baskets, protect them while the field is worked, and return them afterward.

The breeding and rearing time can last from March through July.

Deutsch-Amerikanisches Bürgerbüro
German-American Community Office
67657 Kaiserslautern, Lauterstr. 2
Phone: 0631 363-3010
Email: info@gaco-kl.de
URL: www.gaco-kl.de
Office Hours: Mon, Tue, Wed, Fri 9 a.m. – 1 p.m., Thu 2 p.m. – 6 p.m.