The Dog Eats The Deer (NOT for Sensitive Viewers)

Okay, so Mei-Mei and I were walking along the trail to town Saturday and we came across a big patch of dark, wet sand with deer hairs all around it. There was also some gigantic sort of poop in the middle of the dark patch.

Obviously, something major had happened. In the bushes nearby, I found the skin off the tail and bum of a deer. I could tell it was a deer's bum by the color. I also found a deer stomach full of pungent digested grass and green leaves. The smell was at once comforting and horrifying.



Coming back to the trail, I stumbled over a young deer that had been chewed up, rolled into a bundle, and buried under dry leaves and sticks. What the HECK....?!?

I know coyotes will take down a deer, but they won't just leave it there. They take it TO GO, and they eat it ALL. So who or what did this?

Sunday, we came along the trail and found the deer had been pulled out, dragged down the river bank a ways, and ... well, eaten. Totally eaten. The bones, hoofs, head, and pelt were splayed out and cleaned pretty thoroughly.

Here's a video of Mei-Mei nibbling the leftovers. (Don't watch it if you really have a soft spot for cute young deer.)

I think the killer was a bear, actually. That would explain the giant poop at the scene of the kill.

It's pretty exciting to be out in the woods with something so big and hungry nearby!