BRC Fallow Deer

Spring has sprung and with it comes bright colors, fresh air, sunshine and the promise of new life. It is time to get outside and start working on all the springtime projects before the start of our fawning season. It is just around the corner and I CANNOT wait to see how many new fawns join our herd this summer. We are especially excited for this year’s babies. We (hopefully) had a hand in creating some of them this season. How? This past fall we did something a little different for our breeding season. Artificial Insemination on our thirteen does, and we have NO IDEA if it worked or not.

You are probably wondering why we chose to make things more complicated by doing artificial insemination? Yeah, I wondered about that too…. Fallow deer are amazing creatures that do not need a lot of intervention or attention. They are hardy, adaptable creatures that thrive in most settings. However, there are a couple of reasons why the extra work of A.I. is worth it for us. First, our deer live within a pen and do not naturally disperse their genetics. Natural wildlife ensures that genetic lines stay diverse when young bucks move off into other areas. When genetic lines and deer herds get a little too tight or close together, the health of the deer and the herds can suffer. This usually presents itself with weaker deer that have deformities and abnormalities. So obviously we want to avoid this and maintain a strong herd now and in the future.  

Second, we have voluntarily entered into a certification program that monitors our herd for CWD, TB and Brucellosis. The goal of this program is to maintain a herd that is free from these diseases for 5 or more years. Certification through this program provides marketing advantages, but it can be problematic when bringing new animals to join the herd. If the animal is coming from a non-certified herd, then we would be required to restart our certification status. We found out that A.I. breeding is a great opportunity for us to incorporate new outcross genetics without having to physically buy or rent a new buck (or two) each year. Outcross genetics are a major factor in cultivating a vigorous herd now and in the years to come.  

Finally, Cost. Pedigreed bucks, that come from certified herds, generally come with a price tag… a fairly steep price tag. Our deer farm, new to the industry, does not have an oversized pocketbook to pull from. Let’s remember that it’s normal not to receive any income from your herd for 3-5 years, especially if you started out with yearling animals like we did. So it is significantly cheaper to buy a couple straws of semen rather than the whole buck. And it’s a whole lot easier to mix n match with a fist full of semen straws from a variety of different bucks. Especially, if you want to diversify your herd genetics quickly. This is a great way to incorporate multiple pedigrees into your herd line up as well; ultimately, the best bang for your buck. (no pun intended) 

Now let’s keep in mind that A.I. is not 100% guaranteed. In fact, it has extremely variable success rates for fallow deer at roughly 30-70%. Artificial insemination for fallow deer is fairly new and the techniques and idiosyncrasies are still being fine tuned. I do think it is important to note that fallow deer A.I. procedures are similar but not the same as what is used for whitetail deer. Deer farms and their veterinarians have been working to create the best and most successful procedure tailored to fallow deer for several years now. 

Artificial insemination for fallow deer is definitely a multi-step process. The first step is to form a breeding plan and purchase semen straws. We must always be looking ahead and planning for our herd. Brendan takes point on this. He happily logs into deer auctions and reaches out to breeders to gather the semen straws we need. Obviously he puts an emphasis on purchasing from pedigreed bucks BUT he also has to stay within our budget. He takes several characteristics into consideration when choosing semen; antler size and shape, animal size, animal coloring (although this does not guarantee fawns thrown will be the same color) as well as temperament. Shopping for semen doesn’t have to be done only a year at a time. The way semen is packed and stored it can last FOREVER. So if Brendan finds a good sale or bundle, he can snag it and save it for years to come. 

Next Step. Action Time! It gets more fun in these next steps. Time to get up close and personal with the deer in the barn. We move all our gals through the barn for CIDR insertion. A CIDR is a hormonal implant that helps ready the deer for synchronized ovulation. Approximately 17 days later we removed the CIDR implants. It is extremely important that we get the girls on the same schedule and ready for the vet crew to work their magic. This has to be done with very specific timing. The vet arranged his schedule ahead and told us exactly what time he would be on site. We worked backwards from that time frame with the goal to breed at exactly 65 hours after the removal of the CIDRS. We have roughly a 2 hour window to A.I. breed to increase our chances of success. Sooooo….. CIDR removal at 1:30am. No biggie. It was oddly peaceful working the girls through the barn in the middle of the night. Ohhh, until it wasn’t. Ameila overshot the chute and we had to lift her front legs back into the chute. We took a deep breath and continued on. Then came the white doe. Oh the white doe. Somehow she ended up UPSIDE DOWN in the chute. How? I still have no idea. We took a moment to take in the whole scene and decide our course of action. Brendan, always our quick thinker, ran out and closed the gate to the pen. We slowly lowered her to the chute floor, while trying to avoid a hoof to the face and circled her back through the barn to try again. Why is it that the tamest deer in the pens are the goofiest in the barn?

Finally! We made it to AI Breeding Day. It was a mixture of excitement and nervous energy as we prepped for the vet crew’s arrival. Brendan and I made sure that all the girls were already caught in the holding pens behind the barn. Easy Peasy, this time. We had everything squared away and rolling smoothly. They arrived about 5pm so we had plenty of time to get prepared and ready to start breeding at exactly the right time. The vet crew we hired was like a well oiled machine. They had everything set up as needed and knew exactly what needed to be done, and when. It inspired confidence in our first attempt at A.I. on our farm. We did have one extra exciting moment when a doe managed to escape the chute. With some quick thinking and a near miss she was turned around and returned to the holding box directly behind the chute. You never know what is going to happen when working with animals. All in all our first A.I breeding seemed to go off without a hitch. 

And now we wait. Yep! We wait all the way until fawning season to know what our A.I. success rate will be. I can’t help but get excited for our future. How many fawns will drop this year? Next year? Will we bottle feed any fawns? What type of antlers will be grown on our property? What sort of legacy will BRC Fallow deer build? I predict a bold and bright future as we are pouring our heart and soul into this endeavor.
~The Deer Wife
BRC Fallow Deer