One of the benefits of feeding the pigs every morning is that we have a daily opportunity to watch a small herd of sika hinds get increasingly confident and close as they target their share of the pigs daily rations.

It is always the hinds though; the sika stags are much more reticent and rarely come close.

Sika deer change their coats according to the season. The winter coat is a darkish grey/brown, whilst the summer coat is lighter in colour with white spots. Right now they are changing to the winter coats and you can see hinds in both summer and winter attire. Given the frosty mornings we have enjoyed over the last week I don’t expect the summer coats will be visible for long.