That way, it can be left alone for short periods of time without much chance that a predator will find it. When the mother senses danger, she'll give a warning cry, which causes the fawn to instinctively drop to the ground and freeze. The mother will run away, and return when it's safe, perhaps several hours later. But by the time we get a phone call, it's often too late. Once the animal is truly orphaned, it must be turned over to a wildlife rehabilitation center to have any chance at all of surviving in the wild.
Wildlife rehabilitation is a difficult business.
It involves rescuing sick, injured and orphaned wildlife, administering proper veterinary care, providing proper nutrition, and educating juvenile animals on procuring natural food. The goal is to release a healthy wild animal back to its natural habitat. The rehabilitation succeeds if the animal can get its own food, avoid predators, find a mate, successfully reproduce and raise its young. They usually feed the fawn cow's milk. If the fawn survives, it becomes attached to its human caregiver and loses its ability to survive in the wild.