January
  • Provide adequate shelter for all animals
February
  • Feed requirements for deer are reduced in winter as their metabolism slows down
  • Bucks begin shedding antlers or buttons
March
  • Feed supplement mix
  • Feed hay free choice
  • Provide clean water at all times
  • Take manure samples
  • Deworm deer
  • Start pasture control measures and check all fences
April
  • Continue fence control
May
  • Make sure fences are fawn proof
  • Buck roundup after all antlers or buttons have been dropped and before fawning starts
  • Beginning of fawning season, do not disturb more than necessary
  • Patrol fences for signs of coyotes and other predators
June
  • Fawning continues
  • Bucks begin growing new antlers
  • Yearling venison bucks need good pasture and supplements
  • Provide good water, any necessary minerals
  • Harvest hay early are possible for highest nutritional content
July
  • Deworm yearling venison bucks
  • Bucks are still in velvet
  • Good pasture is necessary to guarantee growth of fawns
  • Bucks begin to gain weight, preparing for rut
August
  • Bucks have developed antlers and will rub off velvet
  • Fawns are growing fast, and need lots of good forage
  • Bucks are getting heavy and fat, necks swelling
  • Bucks may begin to get aggressive
  • Begin your marketing strategy for October
September
  • Provide adequate shelter for all animals
October
  • Busiest month of the year
  • Prepare and begin roundup
  • Count and wean fawns, process the later, keep in dry corral with shelter
  • Process does, check for udders, make sure condition is good to ensure early conception
  • Vaccinate and deworm does
  • Take blood samples of all groups of deer, check for selenium
  • Rut season begins, does will stimulate bucks
  • Does go into breeding pastures after roundup
  • Bucks go into separate breeding pastures
  • Yearlings are placed in separate breeding pasture with older bucks
  • Watch out for aggressive bucks, do not allow children into breeding pasture
  • Never go into breeding pasture alone or on foot, best to use vehicle
  • Do not disturb mating more than necessary
November
  • Process the weaned fawns
  • Count, weigh, vaccinate, eartag and separate by sex
  • Feed hay to fawns free choice and water
  • Segregate late fawns and runts
December
  • Begin to separate bucks and does
  • Bucks go into their own pasture
  • Feed requirements of bucks increases to regain condition after rut
  • Breeding does go into winter pasture
  • Continue priority feeding of fawns
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References:
Deer Farming in North America, Josef Von Kercherinck Zur Borg
The Canadian Elk & Deer Farmer Summer 1996