Farm and Ranch life
- Thread starter Baker
- Start date
HF or free range...I own both and both produce comparable bucks . Can you tell the difference? I'll elaborate on my farm as this thread develops but one thing I have learned having spent 40 years managing around both HF and LF is that wire doesn't grow big deer. Age and nutrition grow big bucks.
bwoods11
5 year old buck +
Wire would help with age though I’m thinking?
Neighbors are often the key to whether the buck makes it to age 4 or older.
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Cool bucks. I'd like to see the video on how that buck grew as he aged.
I have to disagree though with your thoughts that there is no difference in free range versus high fence deer though. Every day I drive by a pig farmer that got into the deer business and put up a high fence around a few acres of open pasture. He bought some deer and now he has a bunch of 200"+ deer and I guess it's common for them to be 170"+ at 2 years old. He likely has more 200" deer in that 10 acre pen than the entire county has in thousands of wild deer.
I have to disagree though with your thoughts that there is no difference in free range versus high fence deer though. Every day I drive by a pig farmer that got into the deer business and put up a high fence around a few acres of open pasture. He bought some deer and now he has a bunch of 200"+ deer and I guess it's common for them to be 170"+ at 2 years old. He likely has more 200" deer in that 10 acre pen than the entire county has in thousands of wild deer.
4wanderingeyes
5 year old buck +
If you own thousands of acres, you can also manage wild deer ;)
Your right. When I made my comment about wire I was thinking wildlife mgt. not breeder pen [ or 10 acre enclosures in an open pasture with store bought deer]
Years back I spent some time at the Ms. State research facility and over the years I have been in breeder pens quite a bit. Lots can be learned there. But deer conceived from A.I, that eat marshmallows or apples from your hand, that have ear tags, pedigrees, hybridized genetics......are radically different from the deer and the environment of any game fenced hunting property I have ever been in. And I've been in a lot. Though I have never been in one less than a thousand acres plus.
I am always happy to compare personal experience with game fenced deer vs. deer in immediately contiguous LF pastures to anyone interested in the conversation. I have both and can separate emotion from fact.
Native Hunter
5 year old buck +
I liked the snakes. Something I had never seen before.
jsasker007
5 year old buck +
Very impressive! It's official Baker that you are now someone I will make time to follow and listen to any advice you might give on land or deer. I meant I will follow your posts(not follow you around and sleep at the end of your driveway). You obviously have proven results with awesome success.
