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What is Cervid Farming? 11 Types

Ultimate Guide Alpaca Farming

What is Cervid Farming / Members of Cervid family

  • White-Tailed Deer
  • Elk
  • Caribou
  • Elk
  • Moose
  • Reindeer
  • Red Deer
  • Sika
  • Pere David’s,
  • Muntjak
  • Axis

Deer / Cervid Farming / Profitability Table

Deer TypeAve WeightAverage Calves/YrGestationMeat Retail Price/lb
White Tailed150 2201$ 38.95
Mule120 - 3202203$ 7 - 9.50
Elk71- - 7301240 - 262$ 44.95
Reindeer350 - 4001222$ 74.95
Moose840 - 15001243$ 7.50
Sika93122434.95
Red4401236$ 35.95
Pere David's3701286
Axis792227$ 29.99
Mutjah301214$ 39.95

History of Deer Farming

What is Cervid Farming? Farming of Deer Dates Back thousands of years in China. Today the History in the United States – dating to the last 100 years.

Currently, New Zealand has the largest number of Deer Farms – 2006 Census showed 3,500 Farms – with 1.7 Million Deer in their herds. Deer were not Native to New Zealand but were imported from England and Scotland.

Deer Farming in New Zealand

Intensive Deer farming is also a very strong Market in Australia FAQ

  • Began in 1971
  • 85% of Venison production is Exported
  • 90% of all Antlers is Exported to Asia

Can you Farm Raise Deer

Yes, Cervid Farming is farming animals that are part of the Civid Family. That includes Deer Family, Whitetail, Rein deers, Red and Fallow Deers. From a 2007 Impact Study the industry is growing to a tune of 14% a year.

The Current Deer Farming is increasing in the United States Market. Last Year it accounted for 7.9 Billion Dollar Industry.

In the United States, they surveyed Had an Average of 82 deer in their Herds. The Does were having 1.3 Fawns per year. Farming is dynamic, and that’s why one form is often different from the other. So today, we are going to look at some general tips bothering on cervid ( Deer) farming, and how one can avoid making mistakes when setting out to start their own Deer Farm farm.

Deer Farming Derby Sand Ranch

These States had the Largest Deer Farms

States with Deer Farms# Farms
Pennsylvania1000
Texas 1006
Minnesota722
Ohio666
Wisconsin511
Louisianna355

Is Farming White Tail Deer Profitable

Yes, Farming White Tail Deer is a Profitable Farming enterprise. The Demand is Growing each year. Currently, White Tail Deer are the Most Popular Big Game Animal in North America., and the United States is Importing $ 6.3 Million per year in Venison

Deer Meat is much leaner than Beef. It contains less than 50 % of the fat that Beef does. It is also easier to feed deer on grazing. Making it a Healthy Alternative to Beef and Pork.

It would be wise to plan several trips to Active Deer Farms to Talk to the Farmers. And also knowing that New Zealand and Australia have the biggest Ranches to learn from.

Grants are Available for new farm Startups. Here is a Grant Submission Tutorial. Searching for Grants can start Here.

Deer can Be Bred for 14 YeaRS

Advantages of Farming White Tail Deer

  • Birth Rate is high and can produce fawns up to 8 years
  • Give Birth easily and Wean Babies early
  • Tolerate Cold and Hot Climates – Very Hearty
  • They produce several Income streams
  • Can be raised on land that is not suited for farming

Dis Advantages of Deer farming

  • Containment – High Fencing
  • Handling and Transportation Methods

Largest Importers of Venison

  • Germany – 20,000 Metric Tons
  • Korea – 4.941 Metric Tons
  •  Singapore – 240 Tons per Year
  • Japan – 144 – Metric Tons
  • Kuwait – 1 Metric Ton

Sources of Profit in Deer farming

Breeders

Hunting Ranches

Sales to other Farms

Sperm Collection

  • Collected from Bucks, Stags
  • Some by Electro – insemination by Vets / Trained Professionals
  • Female Plastic Decoy with female estrous hormone on plastic orifice – buck mounts and sperm collected.
  • Thought that Sperm degradation begins after 24 hours
  • Takes Time to Collect
  • Concentration is better than Volume
  • Freezing Sperm greatly increases shelf life
  • You can begin collecting when Bucks are 7-8 months old
  • Prices of Sperm ranges from $300 – $1500 per Straw
Artificially inseminated Deer

Meat

Deer Venison is Harvested for the increasing Vension Market in a controlled manner

  • Stages are Killed at 15 – 16 Months
  • Hinds is at 18 months of age
  • Deer are Usually Shot in the Field and then transported to on-site slaughtering, or off-site Processing.
  • Fauns are not used for Meat Process – It is illegal to kill deer at that early of an age
  • Venison is very low in fat / 50% less than Beef
  • Types of meat Produced, Stew Meat, Ribs, Roast, Back Straps, Steaks, and Heart.

Antlers

  • Health Benefits – Studies Suggest it has Health Liver Benefits
  • Quality of Antlers are gauged by Size, maturity, Blood Content and Abnormalities
  • Factors that affect Velvet Quality are – Age, Genetics, Feeding, Weight of Bull, Stage of Development, handling of antler, Removal process, and shipment Methods
  • View Handling Methods
  • Removal Deer Are Sedated
  • Antlers are Surgically removed
  • Process has done each Spring as long as Antlers continue to grow
  • Antlers are soft and with Hair are then Stored

Urine

  • Deer Urine Business is Growing rapidly – 44 Million + market and growing
  • Deer needs to be collected from Female Deer – some operations have collection systems set up under stalls. As Urine drips through the floor it is collected.
  • Deer Pees 1/2 Gallon per day
  • Deer Urine sells for $ 4 – $ 13 per Oz
  • Most potent is when deer is in Esterous – Deer Farmers can artificially initiate this
  • Buck Urine can be used to Draw in Buck Deer to Fight.
  • Deer Urine is Filtered and Refrigerated

Deer Feed is much less than Cattle

85% of Current Deer Imports are coming From New Zealand

Three Types of Deer Farms ( 0f 302 Farms)

Breeding Only – 62%

These tended to be the smallest operations in space Required – Most in 20 Acres or less in Pens. Quality of Deer is usually hinged on Deer Horn Size. Larger the Better

Breeding and Hunting – 32 %

Thes had the Largest land footprint averaging 1700 Acres

Hunting Only – 7%

Key Information on Cervid Farming

Starting a cervid farm or ranch often requires innovative skills, energy, and much time spent in research. Once you’ve considered your options and decided what is right for you, it’d be ideal for you to visit established operations and have a chat with other deer owners who are raising the type of deer you are interested in.

Carrying out this first step, will help save you some time, and also allow you to link up important information to start off on the right foot. Also, through this step, you’ll be able to start formulating your every business plan, and marketing techniques

Be Aware of the Regulations

Before you think of starting a cervid farm, find out what domestic and regional agencies regulate ownership, transportation, propagation, and sales of the deer species/product you’re interested in your state. 

This is because while some states do allow private ownership of certain deer, at the cost of requesting a license or fee to maintain your permit, other states and provinces simply do not permit private ownership of certain deer.

So, always endeavor to check with your state or provincial Game Management Agency and Department of Agriculture, before embarking on your cervid farming adventure.

Sourcing for Start-up Capital

Most times, start-up capital often deters some people from having to run a cervid farm. But the truth is, it shouldn’t be so. This is because you can make inquiries within your state or provincial representatives, senators and other officials, concerning the possibility of grants and loans available for small scale business enterprises. Or you can confirm from your local department of agriculture, as that may also be a source of information for monies set aside for alternative farming programs.

  • Operational Expenditures – 41.9 %
  • Capital Expence – 40.5 %
  • Feed Cost – 11.1 %
  • General – 6.5 %

Plan

Evaluate and determine what tools and facilities you’ll need before purchasing them. Put differently, before buying one fence post, roll of fence, and especially stock, it is highly important for you to plan, evaluate, re-plan and re-evaluate your options. Please, never be scared to ask questions if you have any doubts. It’s better to get the right guidance than to end up spending money on things you won’t need in your cervid farm.

How Much Land do you Need for a White Deer Farm

We have Found Farms from 20 Acres to 1700 Acres

Farm Layout

Once again, you’ll need to meticulously plan on how you’ll want your cervid farm to appear. Thus, have a pre-knowledge of the design you’ll want on your range, pens, food plots, breeding areas and handling facilities. Plus, if you’re planning on expanding in future, this will be an ideal time to also include that in your plan.

And given that deer often adapts properly to most terrain, acreage suitable for cervid farming may be relatively inexpensive. Thus, on one prime acre of land, you may be able to accommodate2-3 adult whitetail deer, 7-10 adult fallow deer, 4-7 adult red deer, 7-8 axis deer, and 1-2 elk.

Plus, reducing the number of cervid per acre, will help relieve stress on the animal deer.

you will need to observe that it will become a cost-effective, and also making it easy to maintain the plant densities.

Fencing

When opting to choose a fencing option for your cervid farming, ensure to pick a hi-tensile fence designed specifically for deer or game. In such a fence, there is often a tiny square-like or rectangles) inside the fencing near the ground level, which will help your cervid farm stand the test of times. It will also compensate for fro the Deer’s ability to jump.

Build Pens

Fence installation circles across the posts that support it. Thus, always utilize high-quality posts (which are spaced closely enough to support the weight of the fence without sagging) and galvanized fence staples to secure fencing.

Other than that, you’ll need to work the fence from the middle to ends, thus creating a rubber band-like tension. And this tension will help reduce injuries to your cervids that come into contact with the fence. The performance of your fence depends on the proper construction of the braces you build to support it. That’s why you need to seek out an expert’s advice and heed to them when building your fence.

What is Darting

Darting a deer is when you shoot the deer with a tranquilizer dart to immobilize them. Deer are challenging to transport. Also when you are artificially inseminating them. They need to be tranquilized. The amount of medication used is according to the deer’s size. You can also use Darting to give a deer Medication.

Darting a Deer

Please, avoid cutting corners here because it could lead to a total disaster for your cervid farming.

Furthermore, Gateways should provide suitable passages of all necessary equipment. Plan for shelter, feeders and water facilities. Plus, it’d be wise to consider food and water dispensation from outside the pen for personal safety during the rut(coupling) season. Build so that deer can be moved from one area or paddock to another without much handling or darting.

Handling facilities often work best when located in the middle, and designed specifically for your farm. Thus, tie everything together with fence corners and gate entries built to withstand any storm. Thereafter, build gate sills and overheads to enable ease of opening in any weather. Lastly, consider the height of overheads, which will allow vehicles with heavy metals, to plow snow and deliver bulk feed to your cervid farm.

Nutrition

Protein, energy, vitamins and minerals are key to the deer’s diet. And just as the case is with traditional livestock, the breeder should always consider soil samples and the nutritional value of the deer’s diet to add up to the right minerals. As far as proteins and energy are concerned, the owner should always supplement them with feeds, if the pasture happens not to supply enough nutrients. Nutritional requirements of deer should be considered on a seasonal basis since they change based on gestation, lactation, antler growth and the available nutrients on your farm.

In a nutshell, cervid farming which has mostly to do with deer, can only be ran successfully, if you take the time out to do your research, ask questions before making purchases, take advise from experts, and then find out if the government of your state prohibits deer farming.

Gov Associations to help starting a Deer ranch

https://youtu.be/ks7w8–1V48
North American Deer Association

Deer Diseases

CWD – Chronic Wasting Disease

CWD Cronic Wasting Disease – is a disease of the Deer, Elk,and Moose affecting their central Nervous system. Can take over a year to see symptoms – Zombie Deer Disease

CWD Zombie Deer Disease

TB / Bangs

Also Called brucellosis It is very Hard to detect infected animals.

  • Symptons – Aborted or weak calves being born
  • Reduced Milk production
  • Calves may be plagued with infections

Blue Tongue –

  • Non – Contagious disease
  • It is spread n=bt Insects
  • It is safe to eat Deer with Blue Tongue
  • Symptoms – High Fever
  • Swelling of Face
  • Swelling of Tongue
  • Swelling causes the tissue appearance to be Blue
Lethal Deer Diseases

Cervis FAQ’s

  • Are Goats Cervids – No Goats fall into the Bovid Family
  • Cervids vs Bovids – They are Both Ruminants. Cervids are from the Deer Family and have Antlers. Bovids are from the Cattle Family and have hollow Horns.
  • Are Deer Bovids – No, Deer are in the Cervid Family
  • What is the Difference from a Antelope and a Reindeer – thge mauor difference is in their horns. Antelope’s horns have horns that are permanent, whereas Deer have Horns that are shed and grow new every year.
  • What is a Difference Between a Goat and a Deer. Deer areb from the Cervid Family and have horns that shed and regrow Yearly, Goats are from the Bovid Family and have Hollow Horns.
  • What is the difference between a Gazelle and Deer – Same answer – Plus Gazelle are much faster than Deer.
  • What is Smallest Cervid – Pudus Deer

Common List of Bovines

What are Bovines – cloven-hoofed, ruminant mammals – Members of the Cattle Family – Hollow Horns.

  • Bison
  • Domestic Yak
  • Oxen
  • African Buffalo
  • Common Eland
  • Wild Water Buffalo
  • Goats