LAKEPORT — A doe has adopted a feral kitten at Dan and Sue Stahlman”s home in Lakeport. Whereas dogs and even raccoons have adopted kittens, no one, including wildlife biologists, can remember a case of a deer adopting a kitten. The abandoned kitten showed up at the Stahlman residence two weeks ago and was little more than skin and bones. The Stahlmans fed the kitten and it started to put on some weight but still wouldn”t allow anyone near it, at least not until a doe began to show up at the Stahlman”s residence looking for water. According to Dan Stahlman, the kitten immediately went to the doe, which started to lick it. The two bonded in a short time and have been inseparable since. The kitten sleeps in a nearby shed but as soon as the deer shows up it runs to greet it, at which point the deer responds by licking the kitten. Dan said the deer goes looking for the kitten and licks it until it”s soaking wet. The Stahlmans contacted Lake County Record-Bee outdoors columnist Terry Knight about the unusual coupling so that Knight could view the deer and cat and confirm the story.
