 During the ten months of filming, 32 trained animals were used,  including five fawns. The fawns needed to be replaced as they aged  in order to conform to the description of the title animal. The fawn  found by Jody, as he pulls back the foliage, was three days old and  had been rescued from a forest fire. Other animals used in filming  included 126 deer, 9 black bears, 37 dogs, 53 wild birds, 17  buzzards, 1 owl, 83 chickens, 36 pigs, 8 rattlesnakes, 18 squirrels,  4 horses and 17 raccoons.