Do you have deer near where you live?

By on January 28, 2020

I spend a lot of time in Belmont because one of my family members lives there. There are many deer crossing signs too but for a while I had not seen any. One evening I saw three! I was so excited because I think deer are such beautiful animals and every time I see them I am reminded that we are in their territory as I saw them walking around in the neighborhood which at one time was just trees and nature and not filled with cars and people.

It makes me sad when I see deer that have been hit and on the side of the road. One night as I was driving down 280 south and just got on to 92 east something told me to slow down and I’m so glad I did.

If you have ever driven on that overpass you already know that to the right is mountains and to the left is 280 south. That night I came across a deer that crept up onto the road. It looked like it may have just crossed the 280 freeway and just needed to cross the bit of road on the overpass to get to the mountainous side. I slowed the car down to almost a complete stop so the deer had time to think and not flee into the wrong direction. It looked at me and luckily there were no other cars on the road. It was just me and the deer. We stared at each other for a few seconds and I whispered to myself, “Go head. You can go.” The deer was able to get to the other side and I proceeded to drive over the over pass.

I encourage everyone to abide by the deer crossing signs and just be very aware especially at night. It is our responsibility to keep these animals safe from harm. The pictures I included were of the deer that I saw just last week walking around looking for food.

I do remember a while back in the foothills of San Jose there was a senior community that had to sterilize the deer population.  The deer were no longer just leaving people alone and becoming aggressive and sometimes attacked dogs!  It was actually approved by the state Department of Fish and Wildlife.  I guess I was lucky that these deer I took pictures of didn’t seem to mind!