A few summers back when our dog Darby still had puppy in her, she found a new large playmate. Each day a female deer would come up into our yard and just stand there waiting for Darby. I half expected the deer to come knock on our door and ask, “Can Darby come out and play?”
Darby would run out to greet the deer and stop at a safe distance of about 20 feet. After a brief showdown, Darby would begin to run around the deer in tightening circles, eventually leading the deer to chase Darby around the yard. Some days this would last for 10 minutes or more until one or both of them ran out of gas.
This funny scene went on for weeks until one day the deer actually caught Darby and rolled her several times. Darby let out a couple loud yelps and ran to my side. She was shaken but not stirred, and otherwise seemed fine.
However, Darby wouldn’t play with the deer after that incident. I guess she realized the consequences of playing with someone ten times your size and just as quick.
Here’s a video of Darby and the deer playing: