Food Plots

Food plots can greatly increase the nutrition deer get on your hunting property.  Keep in mind that they can devastate your plants before they become established.  Areas planted must be big enough to withstand intense grazing pressure or they need to be protected.  I've had good results with electric fencing if done properly.  I do consulting through my Deer Man Consulting. You can follow me on Facebook at Deer Man Consulting 

• Forage soybeans produce more leaf tonnage than crop beans. 
• Eagle Seed in Arkansas developed a forage soybean mix.  These beans can grow to over 6 feet high and have over 40% leaf protein.    Game Keeper RR is a custom, blend containing both forage types, climbing soybean, and soybean varieties that are tall, high yielding
  and broadly adapted for your geography. The blend
  features varieties which mature at different times
  and allow the deer to feed on both mature
  soybean and green leaf tissue. You will get
  high tonnage, excellent browse tolerance
  and great seed yield all in one bag.  http://www.eagleseed.com/forage.html

Cattle Rubs for EHD control on Deer

If you get Deer Tracking Magazine I wrote an article for the summer 2012 edition.  It's on using cattle rubs for insect control.  I've had amazing results using them since 2009 to repel insects from the animals.   I don't sell the rubs or get a commission.  I'm just giving you free information on a way I've found to reasonably control insects on my deer.  You can view full information on how to use them, where to get them and how they work.  Check my Facebook Notes on Charles DeerMan Black at the following link to see more.
https://www.facebook.com/deermancharlesblack#!/notes/charles-deerman-black/ehd-solution-cattle-rubs-for-deer-insect-control/282328211856247

Are Southern Deer Genetically More EHD Resistant?

 

by Whitetail Rack Ranch

EHD Resistant Southern Deer????
I keep seeing things about 'buy my deer because they are EHD resistant southern deer'. Everyone can have an opinion on something but when it's controversial sometimes people get a little overzealous in their arguements. I'm a scientist, not a mad scientist, and not one in a lab with bubbling bottles. I was trained as a wildlife biologist and studied deer behavior for two masters degrees. That doesn't make me smarter than anyone else but that much education does make your mind look at things a little differently.
In a scientific study, all variables not being manipulated for research should be controlled. For example, if I had two groups of deer in my study to determine if protein supplements produced bigger antlers and one group was my 'control' that didn't recieve the supplement but they had a food plot with high protein beans and the group that received the supplement had bermuda grass, then it wouldn't be a good scientific study because the variables in the food plot would make the study inaccurate.
A lot of what you hear about deer health and what works is anecdotal evidence. Anecdotal evidence is not scientific in nature. An example would be if I put vanilla extract in my deer water when they had pneumonia and they all got well, then vanilla being the cure for pneumonia would be anecdotal evidence. They may just have gotten over it on their own.
'Facts' that you hear about EHD resistance in deer is often anecdotal. There is some evidence but not much that proves a southern deer may be inherently more EHD resistant than a northern deer because of years of breeding to only southern deer. I haven't found the study again yet but I had read one a couple of years ago and if I do find it again I'll post it. The study was on passive immunity for EHD and I think southern deer were used. The study took a group of fawns as newborns to bottle feed. Titer levels were checked and found there was some EHD resistance. That was from passive immunity from the mother either through the placenta or immunoglobins in the cholostrum.
The fawns were divided into two groups. One was left outside and the other was moved inside to an insect-free environment. At weaning the two groups were checked for titer levels for EHD resistance again. The outside group showed resistance but the inside group did not. The results of the study showed that resistance exists from passive immunity when born but the passive immunity does not relate to permanent immunity. The difference in the two groups of fawns is that the outside group had exposure to the virus but the inside group did not. EXPOSURE is necessary either through direct exposure to the virus in the environment or through vaccines. Otherwise, after the passive immunity wears off the animal will be unprotected.
If the animals were EHD resistant because they were from the south and it was in their genetics passed down, then the EHD would have been there after weaning for both groups. The arguement is that if you buy northern deer and move them to the south, they won't survive. I have about 300 pure northern genetics deer in Louisiana. Did I lose many when I moved them here? You bet. I got sick of going out and dragging dead deer to my burn pile. The southern resistance guys will say that mine died because they weren't EHD resistant or weren't used to our insects or other diseases. I agree in part, but.....when deer are handled, they are stressed. If they are darted they are stressed even more. A study in South America on red deer showed lack of immune response 30-40 days after tranquilization. Hauling deer in a trailer for 20+ hours adds to the stress level they already have. Then you dump them out in foreign surroundings often mixed with deer that start pecking order fights. They are put abruptly on new feed. It's no wonder so many die. And stress doesn't just last 2-4 weeks. Some studies indicate that stress related illnesses can occur up to a year later.
I believe that moving northern deer south will result in some deaths. Minimizing stress through proper handling will help a great deal. Bringing feed from their origin and gradually changing the ratio of new/old feed will be less stressful. Pen size changes can cause stress. I use Aureomycin in my feed for a month after the deer are moved. Anything to mitigate the changes and stress that results from it will increase survival rates.
As for EHD, I believe that northern deer can survive very well in the south. They must have some exposure to the virus. There will be deaths. But, I know of many pure southern deer that have died from EHD. Ask a biologist from any southern state when there is a bad epidemic of EHD. Native deer are dying in the woods.
If you move northern deer south, just prepare for higher death rates. Once they get past that first year they do much better. The offspring don't know the difference. The advantages of northern bloodlines are worth what we went through initially. If you don't want that heartache and stress, buy northern bloodlines from someone who has suffered through it and has the strongest survivors.
EHD and BT viruses are killers no matter where the deer are from when it hits hard.
Please respond with your comments. I know there will be a lot of you that feel differently but at least try and find some scientific evidence to back up your arguements.

EHD: Northern vs. Southern Deer Resistance

 

by Whitetail Rack Ranch

I had a conversation with a friend about northern vs. southern EHD resistance. I wanted to share some of my thoughts. From the research I've read, I don't believe northerns with exposure to EHD will have any more trouble than southerns if their previous exposure history is the same. I hear it all the time that northerns aren't EHD resistant but I think that the people that have southerns are the ones promoting that view. If you bring northerns down south they likely won't have the resistance of deer born and raised in the south. I know someone in southern Louisiana who has said for years that it was a mistake to have northerns in the south. I haven't heard him say much since he lost a bunch of his southerns a few years ago when I was losing northerns. Even with southerns, research shows that fawns lose their immunity after weaning if they don't have continued exposure to the virus. It takes time for northerns to build their immunity because of the cyclic nature of EHD. If you bring northerns down and there is no significant EHD present for a few years, when it hits hard I would expect northerns to have somewhat higher death losses. Likewise, though, if fawns lose their immunity without having contact with the virus wouldn't the southern ones have higher death losses later in life too? I personally believe we're going to see EHD worsen for southerns in the future. If someone puts up a mister system around their pens, they eliminate the chance for building immunity to the virus. Animals MUST be exposed and get the virus to have immunity. One thing that you may be seeing in your southerns with flu-like symptoms, rather than more severe symptoms with northerns, is their history. Research shows if a deer gets EHD-1 it will have SOME cross protection but NOT immunity to EHD-2. Once the animal has the virus it should have lifetime immunity for that particular serotype. That's why live virus vaccines are only given once without the need for annual boosters as compared to killed virus vaccines. The problems facing us with EHDV and BTV is similar to humans and the flu. Mutations each year present the animals with slightly different viruses. The permanent immunity to one serotype doesn't prevent infection from a different one. Give northerns in the south some time to build their immunity and lets hope mister systems don't cause our southerns to lose their resistance. Something else I hear people promote is buying semen from their EHD resistant southern bucks. I have seen NO evidence of EHD protection passed down from the sire. Think about it just from a common sense perspective. Why do we vaccinate for BRSV, BVD, IBR, PI3, C&D, etc. if there is passdown immunity from the mother. We should be able to vaccinate a doe and all of her offspring would have immunity without ever needing to be vaccinated. Immunity doesn't work that way!!! Feel free to comment.

Shock Effect Deer Products

We are a distributor for Shock Effect deer products.  To learn more about the products or buy some E-mail Me.

http://www.whitetailrackranch.com/

X-Factor Starting off 2011 in Great Shape

X-Factor is starting off 2011 in great shape.  He is ready to start packing on new antler growth.  Maybe he'll be the first 600" deer in the world!  He is the only whitetail to be officially scored by SCI at more than 500".  With over 60 scorable points, adding only 1" on each point would put him in the high 500s without any additional mass, main beam, or new tines added.  We'll be posting Watch Him Grow pictures later this year.

Comment on this post and I'll get the message to contact you.
http://www.whitetailrackranch.com/

Whitetail Rack Ranch fawn edema

We have had problems with this little guy and his brother off and on since they were born.  We found both of them in the pen and didn't appear that they had nursed.  Both were premature and weak.  Their front legs bent backwards at the joint and they couldn't stand without assistance.  We immediately took them in and gave them colostrum.  This one is Heat Stroke.  My wife, Annette, gave him the name because when he could finally walk he would wobble around the yard until he got tired and collapse.  He would often be hot in in full sun.  Once when she found him he had convulsions.  She said he must have had a heat stroke, thus his name.  She would often pick him up, limp, with his head drooping and drooling. 

We've had conversations with Dr. Chris Sullivan, at Sullivan Veterinary Clinic as we were recently treating Heat Stroke for diarrhea.  He would look great and then have health issues like pneumonia or diarrhea.  We'd turn him around and then have problems again.  Dr. Chris and I think it's because they never got colostrum before we gave it to them.  We check the pens daily for new fawns but the first 12 hours is critical.

The swelling in this picture is edema, a swelling cause by fluid trapped under the skin.  This picture is typical of a large parasite load.  We had a fecal sample run but it didn't show parasites were exceptionally heavy.  We had wormed him with Ivomec and Safeguard within the last month.  Since he did show 2 strongyles, Dr. Chris suggested we worm him again with Cydectin.  We always worm for more than one day.  You should ask your vet but I usually worm at twice the cattle dose for 3 days.  Deer have a higher metabolism rate than cattle and I want to make sure they keep the drug in their system long enough to work.

Heat Stroke's edema could have been from parasites but since the load was not severe I think it may have been because of his lack of nutrient uptake from the diarrhea.  He may have poor immune system response because of his lack of colostrum at birth. 

We finally got the diarrhea under control using Arrest.  We used Banamine for inflammation in the gut on a limited basis.  He had 104.1 fever one day and the Banamine had it down to normal the next.  Talk to your vet before using Banamine about the complications from stomach irritation.  He finally got to the point he would not eat.  We lost his brother a couple of days earlier with the same symptoms.  Dr. Chris had me give Heat Stroke one dose of Dexamethasone and some B-12.  He said it would stimulate his appetite.  Dexamethasone can cause immune system compromise from multiple doses so weigh the options with your vet.  It took about 48 hours but Heat Stroke started eating voraciously!  I gave him Karo syrup and some molasses.  His edema was gone the next day.  His stool had started firming up but the Karo and molasses loosened him up again for about a day.  He's going pellets now and has gained weight.  We may always have trouble with him but he's turned the corner from death again.  Being bottle fed makes him easier to handle.  He'll come out of the handler and stand there for you to pet him. 

Hope this gives you some ideas if you have similar problems.

Sullivan Veterinary Clinic in Winnsboro, Louisiana

I've worked with several veterinarians in Louisiana when the need arises for managing the health of my whitetails.  I recently had my first experience with Dr. Chris Sullivan, DVM at Sullivan Veterinary Clinic in Winnsboro, Louisiana.  I was pleasantly surprised with the attention I received in assisting me with two sick fawns.  I've had veterinarians that have been willing to help but they just didn't have experience with whitetails.  Dr. Chris not only has some deer familiarity but he has a great contact to assist him.  His brother, Brad Sullivan, owns Sullivan Whitetail Ranch near Dallas, TX.  Brad has a large breeding operation raising some great whitetails, but more importantly for me, he has a wealth of knowledge and experience.  Dr. Chris consults with Brad on cases that may be complicated.  Having a veterinarian close by is important but expertise with deer health issues is another qualification you should look for.  With so few veterinarians in Louisiana having knowledge of white-tailed deer, I highly recommend seeking your health care needs from Dr. Sullivan.  Contact information is:

 

Sullivan Veterinary Clinic

6355 Hwy. 4
Winnsboro, Louisiana 71295

Mailing Address: P.O. Box 789

Phone: 318-435-4585
Fax: 318-435-7965
Email: info@sullivanvet.com
website: www.sullivanvet.com

Louisiana bred does and fawns for sale

We still have some bred does for sale at our Louisiana ranch.  The genetic background on our does ranges from 200" to over 400" and we'll have a large group of fawns next spring from X-Factor giving us over 500" genetics, the highest in the country.  Our doe fawns from our 200"-344" gentics pen are weaned and ready for release into your hunt pens to increase your genetic base or for use as breeders in your breeding program.  Here is a list of some of the bucks in our background. E-mail me for more information.
.

X-Factor 509 6/8” (official 2010 World Record)

Rolex 441”

RDM Goliath 429”

High Roller 418”

Blue Mountain Bill 347“

Big Jake 344”

30-30 300”+

Northern Gold 292” @ 4

Soaring Eagle 290” B&C @ 4 year

MO Geronimo  288”

Jack the Ripper 284”

Max 270”

Redoy Magnum 267 at 5 ½ years old

Sundance 262” (High Roller sire)

Thunder 262”

Redoy Bill" 256

Kujo 255”  sired over 20 200”+ sons

PA Geronimo 251” at 6.5 years old

Outrageous 250”

Narley 175” at 1, 255” at 2 (largest ever Soaring Eagle son)

Hatchet Jack 241”

Tex 240”

Redoy Penn  232”@5

Thor 226”@4

Buford 204” w/30 ½” inside spread @ 4

Whitetail Rack Ranch 2-year old bucks

These are some of our 2-year old bucks that we are breeding with for 2010.  We AI'd to X-Factor and sold X-Factor semen in several states. 

Rambeaux has an estimated 30" outside spread with 23 points.  He is backing up the does we AI'd to X-Factor.

VooDoo is a High Roller grandson.  He had severe damage several times to his antlers this year.  It really set him back.  VooDoo had over 20 points as a yearling.

Captain Crunch wasn't bottle fed but he is as tame as if he were.  He gets very mean once the does start coming in heat though.  I truly believe he would go from eating cookies from my hand to wanting to kill me once the girls are ready to breed.

Winchester is very agressive to the other bucks when the does come into estrous.  He has a mostly typical rack that we're excited about.  He may not have the biggest score but he has good main beam length, width, tine length and mass.

Laparoscopic Artificial Insemination 2010

We Lap AI'd some of our top does to X-Factor this fall.  The veterinarians and support group from Cooper Veterinary Hospital did a great job.  They said the does were ovualting very successfully and the X-Factor semen was excellent quality.  We're excited about the new fawns coming next spring.  Some of our Goliath and Goliath/High Roller cross does bred to the new world record X-Factor should produce some winners for us.  Thanks to Cooper Vet for their work.  I highly recommend them for your Lap AI.  Their contact information is:

Cooper Veterinary Hospital

5234 Cypress Street

West Monroe, La 71291

318-396-8099 office

 

X-Factor Official Website

Visit the Official X-Factor Website at http://www.x-factordeer.com/.  See the New World Record Whitetail pictures and videos soon.  X-Factor scored an official 509 6/8".  Purchase semen through us for direct from the farm price without mark-up.  This semen has never changed hands since collection.  Semen quality is excellent and shipments are being made several times each week. 

Call or email us now for semen prices on X-Factor and great deals on Dreamcatcher.  We have fawns and does for sale as well.

Charles Black
225-588-2770
daddyo@whitetailrackranch.com

X-Factor video

Watch the X-Factor video.  Awesome compared to photo.  I was about 15 feet from him last week and he was even more awesome in person.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Sl87TpT-5cM

Temporary Exclusion Fencing for Food Plots

I had some previous experience with electric fencing to exclude mule deer in the Texas Panhandle. A client had problems with mule deer entering her lawn area and devastating her flowers. She had a large yard on a lake in a canyon and planted $100's in flowers every year only to be destroyed by the mule deer. I installed a single 1" wide electric tape using rebar posts and screw-on insulators. In the years following until they moved, deer only entered the property twice. Once when the fence controller malfunctioned and once when a guy installing Christmas lights unplugged the controller.

I've tried it on one of my food plots for my white-tailed deer. I still have to tweak it but very few deer have compromised the barrier. I wouldn't use the fence as an inclusion fence but to keep them out I think it should work pretty well. The electric tape flutters in the wind and the deer walk up and touch their noses to it to check it out. Zap and they're gone. I've had a couple go under the fence without touching it but will make some changes in the next few days. I'll update you soon.

Welcome to our Deer Information blog

Welcome to our new blog. You can go to our website to learn more about me, The Deer Man, Charles Black at www.WhitetailRackRanch.com. The purpose of this blog is to learn more about the health and nutrition of pen-raised white-tailed deer. With my educational background in wildlife behavior and lifetime livestock experience including deer I hope to be able to help others as questions come up about health and nutrition issues. I also hope to learn from other participants. Topics are not limited to these perspectives of deer but that is the general focus.

We have a white-tailed breeding facility where we work full-time. EHD (Epizootic Hemorrhagic Disease) can be devastating. We have experience learned through the school of hard knocks but more importantly we've learned so much more from working closely with the Louisiana State University School of Veterinary Medicine and Ag Center.

Much of the information that you come across is anecdotal. It doesn't mean that the information is bad but it isn't based on scientific evidence. An example of anecdotal evidence that wouldn't be worth much can be like this example.
Example: I have a pen of deer that are dying of what I suspect is EHD. I start throwing marshmallows in the pen and the deer stop dying. From that, I can deduce that the marshmallows cured the deer. That is anecdotal evidence. Couldn't it be that the virus ran its course and the deer stopped dying for that reason? We should always look for an answer in science if possible.

The problem we as deer breeders have is that there is so little scientific research on white-tailed deer health and nutrition, especially pen-raised ones.

I'll be posting more information as often as I can. Please feel free to participate. We need to have an outlet where we can focus on issues that are so critical to our success. I'll be asking some of the leading veterinarians to assist me in posting useful information based on science.

Thank you for visiting and please check in daily.