Deer lead to big bucks

By Paul Fallon
Times West Virginian

FAIRMONT May 11, 2008 02:33 am

— Every year thousands of dollars are pumped into the West Virginia economy because of the graceful creature universally known as the deer, and some Mountain State entrepreneurs are working to get a piece of that economic pie.
Over the last few years, deer farms have begun springing up around the state. Currently there are 25 licensed facilities in West Virginia, said Randy Tucker, wildlife biologist with the state Division of Natural Resources.
The farms are facilities where deer are kept captive and then the animals or their products are sold for various reasons. And like with hunting season, big bucks mean big bucks for local deer farmers.
The deer’s genetics determine their worth, much like cattle or horses. The animals who are the descendants of deer who have big antlers, or racks as they are commonly called, are worth sometimes thousands of dollars, said John Rose, a Barbour County deer farmer and member of the West Virginia Deer Farmers Association.
“This is a big business,” Rose said. “All told, I probably have $90,000 invested in my farm.”
And like prize cattle and horses, the deer themselves are not the only products that are sold by the farmers. The semen from the animals sold to other breeders, and that product, if it comes from a prized animal, can also be worth thousands of dollars.
“I have bought a straw of semen that cost $3,000,” Rose said.
“I have pedigrees on my deer that goes back generations,” he added. “There’s a lot more to this than meets the eye.”
There are many uses for the deer that are raised in the enclosed facilities. The animals can be sold to hunting preserves, where people pay thousands of dollars to hunt the large-antlered males. There are currently four hunting preserves in the state, Tucker said. The animals can also be sold to venison producers.
The deer’s urine can also be sold to businesses that manufacture scent-masking agents for humans. The masking agents are then sold to hunters who want to cover their own scent when they head out into the woods to hunt wild deer, Tucker added.
Jack Oliver II, a Marion County deer farmer who also sits on the board of directors for the West Virginia Deer Farmers Association, has been in the business since 2000. He said that the average price of one fawn is around $2,000.
“I know a lot of people who would like to sell one of their cows for that,” Oliver said.
Although the price of the animals is significant, Oliver also pointed out that there are numerous benefits which come from deer farming.
For example, some items sold to the public are developed on deer farms. These items include new camouflage patterns or deer stands.
“When someone develops a new deer blind, they have to test it somewhere,” Oliver said.
“So even people who are against deer farming reap the benefits from deer farming,” he added.
Oliver pointed out that there are several common misconceptions about deer farming.
First off, deer farmers do not capture any animals from the wild to hold in their facilities. According to Oliver, the wild animals’ genetics do not compare to the animals that have been bred for their antler size for years.
Rose agreed, and also pointed out that wild deer also carry diseases. If a wild deer were captured and then held in a facility, the deer farmer would run the risk of infecting the rest of the herd, which could end up costing them thousands of dollars and their livelihoods, Rose said.
Oliver also said deer farmers could not transport their animals as they wish. He pointed out that written permission must be obtained from Division of Natural Resources officials.
“And we never release any deer back into the wild,” Oliver said. “We have way too much money invested in these deer to do something like that.”
Oliver said the association has been working to educate people to what deer farming is all about and the benefits that it brings to the state. He said the association has recently produced a commercial which has been airing on television stations.
Deer farming is a growing business all across the country, so much so that the Agriculture and Food Policy Center at Texas A&M University released an economic impact study on the industry in 2007. According to the study, the total impact of the industry, combining the hunting and farming aspects, is $3 billion a year.
“The economic activity of the industry supports 29,199 jobs, most of which are in rural America,” the report reads. “If this industry did not exist, those jobs would have to be supported by some other economic activity.”
The study did not just concentrate on white tail deer farms. The study includes studies of elk, fallow, and reindeer as well as white tail deer facilities.
E-mail Paul Fallon at pfallon@timeswv.com.

Copyright © 1999-2008 cnhi, inc.