In the lead-up to the holidays, Lori Jones, managing a gift shop at Horsetooth Inn and RV Park in Fort Collins, Colorado, had an unexpected visitor – a wild doe. Known as the matriarch of a local deer family, this curious deer surprised Jones by casually entering the shop, exploring sunglasses and chips. Jones, amused, guided the deer outside with a peanut bar, thinking it was a one-time event. To her surprise, the deer returned with her entire family, including twins and an adopted young buck. Although tempted to let them join the shopping “expedition,” Jones set boundaries with humor. Speculating the rumor of gifts, she guided the family back to the field, making an exception to feed them a peanut bar. Despite the unconventional encounter, Jones appreciated the beauty of wildlife in the midst of holiday chaos, saying, “The population of wildlife here is just astounding.”
