Louisiana Summer 2024 by DandKDesign

W.O.L EXPO, FALL AUCTION & SOUTHERN TOP 30 WHITETAIL EXTRAVAGANZA

August 23 & 24

FEATURED FARM STORY

Bella Mia Whitetails –

Anticipating a Very Bright Future

GENERATIONAL FARMING

Passing Down the Love of Agriculture and the Outdoors

FEATURED FARM STORY

BELLA MIA WHITETAILS –ANTICIPATING A VERY BRIGHT FUTURE

Anticipation is running high at Bella Mia and its dedicated staff, as they raise close to 90 whitetail fawns that they know the industry is highly seeking in terms of genetics. Fawns are thriving this summer among 40 acres of beautiful, green and vibrant pens nestled in the farm’s southeastern Louisiana landscape. Plans include bottle feeding about 50 fawns while leaving the rest to mature naturally.

Yet, they have also been busy adding to their exotic inventory while awaiting the completion of a hunting lodge and two preserves, one for whitetails and one for exotics. Both are scheduled to open in the fall of 2025. “We really

ramped up on red deer (with genetics from Deer Genetics in New Zealand) as well as on fallow deer and have five fallow breeder bucks in our program,” Priest shared. “We have a partnership with Brad Sullivan of Sullivan Whitetail Ranch in Sunset, Texas, and are extremely happy to have this opportunity.”

Currently Bella Mia has 65 fallow fawns, 30 red deer calves and several axis deer fawns on the ground.

As the ranch sees its dreams turn into reality, Priest is grateful to his hardworking staff including Ranch Manager Shawn Miller, Ranch Assistants Colton Strain and Tyler Rube, newly hired Sawyer Evans

along with bottle feeding specialists Kasey Miller and Trinity Oncale. Perhaps Preist’s greatest support comes in the way of his wife Caroline, with whom he’s shared 33 years of joys and good times.

“Caroline is gun-ho about this whole thing,” he said. “I wouldn’t want it any other way.”

In addition to steadfastly running the ranch, staff at Bella Mia strive to ensure customers know their genetics are first class, Priest said. “We want to help stock ranches looking for those markers along with the quality genetics we offer. The deer industry is going very strong. Here is Louisiana, our governmental powers that be are very supportive and our association, Whitetails of Louisiana, has a very strong membership. We feel nothing but upbeat about having a very bright future.”

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Every summer in the late 80’s, as a young teenaged boy, Eddie Ray Borkholder would put out a sign at the front of his Nappanee, Indiana home. It read “Fawns for Sale. $100.” He never had to wait long for interested customers. Turns out, no one can resist a fawn. In 1999, Jim Davidson was on his tractor one early June morning in Marshall, Illinois, when he saw an adult doe get hit and killed by a car. He quickly discovered she had a doe fawn. He made two or three rounds near the road to check on it, worried it would suffer the same fate as it’s mother.

Pretty soon, the little bleating fawn started following him. Concerned for her welfare, Jim, now 80, climbed down from his tractor, scooped up the precocious new life in his arms, and put her in the tractor with him. He rode all day with the tiny fawn either in his lap or right next to him. When daylight began to fade, he wasn’t sure what to do, although he was certain he couldn’t let her go out on her own. That night, as a gift he gave her to his very young grandchildren Derrick and Taylor, who shrieked with love for their new

GENERATIONAL FARMING

PASSING DOWN THE LOVE OF AGRICULTURE AND THE OUTDOORS

By: Gail Veley • Sponsored by The Indiana Deer and Elk Farmers Association

pet and named her Bambi. When their father Rick Davidson (who would later own Illinois Dominant Bucks) got home, he was initially not pleased with what his father had done. At all. However, it turned out to be the best thing that ever happened to their family. And what began as just a love for deer, later turned into a full-blown business after buying 200 acres in 2005 from his Aunt Francie.

Like Davidson, Borkholder’s simple love of deer took a more serious turn in the 1990’s when he started his unique Patrick line and Pine Creek Deer Farm. However, a love for agriculture and all that came with it started much earlier for Borkholder and Davidson by the generations of family members before them, who knew what it was like to be up every morning before sunrise, work long hard hours in the sting of the cold or burning of the sun (along with

working up a hearty appetite) and later drop in bed grateful, tired and ready to start all over again the next day. Eddie Ray, the first is his family to farm deer, grew up learning the art of crop and dairy farming from his father, grandfather and great grandfather. His son Josie, in learning the art of raising deer, felt in his younger years that farming itself was, honestly, just a lot of hard, hard work. “Looking back, I see it now as more of a luxury and bonding time with Dad,” reflected Josie, who now owns Lone Pine Deer Farm with James Slaubaugh. “Today, farming is getting lost. We need to look at creative ways to continue, and deer farming is one way to do that. Dairy farming has become so

commercial and there aren’t many new dairy farms starting up. If we don’t take the opportunity now to carry farming forward it will be lost.”

Davidson, the first is his family to raise deer, is a 5th generation farmer, who comes from a long line of long-lived farmers who raised dairy cows and grew corn, soybeans and alfalfa. When most

children were learning to ride bikes, Davidson was learning to drive a tractor. As age six he sat behind the wheel for the first time, his great great grandfather Richard “Dick” Davidson patiently walking beside him, teaching him the skill needed to drive the now long outdated Ford 8N stick shift two-wheel drive metal seated tractor. “It took a while for me to catch on,” Davidson said. However, he learned along with that experience what drove his grandfather to farm his land. “Farming gets in your blood,” he said. “At first, I wasn’t sure I wanted to farm and work as hard as my Dad. It was only after going away to college and being away from it, that I realized how much I missed it. It’s critical to keep family farms going. Farming is the backbone of our country. We are always going

to need to eat. Without farming, we lose valuable land and the love of the outdoors. Deer farming is an extension of that love and something we need to continue to pass down.”

AN ACT

By: Archer, Moore, and Pfeiffer of the House and Green and Bullard of the Senate

ENROLLED HOUSE BILL NO. 3462

An Act relating to live game; creating the Chronic Wasting Disease Genetic Improvement Act; requiring creation of certain pilot program by certain date; establishing program’s purpose to enhance genetic durability of Oklahoma deer against chronic wasting disease; establishing program at the Oklahoma Department of Agriculture, Food, and Forestry; requiring certain assistance of the Department of Wildlife Conservation; requiring collection of DNA samples; requiring certain procedures and determinations; allowing for the establishment of testing locations; limiting participation in program; providing for certain timeline of program activity; authorizing the promulgation of rules; providing for a one-time permit fee; providing for codification; and providing an effective date.

SUBJECT: Live game

BE IT ENACTED BY THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF OKLAHOMA:

SECTION 1. NEW LAW A new section of law to be codified in the Oklahoma Statutes as Section 6-520 of Title 2, unless there is created a duplication in numbering, reads as follows:

A. This section shall be known and may be cited as the “Chronic Wasting Disease Genetic Improvement Act”.

B. No later than November 1, 2024, the Oklahoma Department of Agriculture, Food, and Forestry shall establish a pilot program to enhance the genetic durability of Oklahoma deer against chronic wasting disease. Such pilot program shall include, but not be limited to, the following program characteristics:

1. The Department of Wildlife Conservation will begin collecting DNA samples to establish a baseline of average genetic codon markers and genomic breeding values for native, free-ranging Oklahoma whitetailed deer. For establishing testing locations in the state, the Department shall use Interstates 35 and 40 as dividing lines or established Department deer management zones as published in the current hunting regulations guide;

2. Limit participation in the program to native white-tailed deer, born and raised in Oklahoma with genetic resistance breeding, including the SS allele at codon 96, and that surpass the genomic estimated breeding value cutoff established for the program by the Oklahoma Department of Agriculture, Food, and Forestry; and

3. Beginning in 2026, during the months of February and March and through the fifteenth of April, bred female and male deer may be released.

C. The Oklahoma Department of Agriculture, Food, and Forestry and the Department of Wildlife Conservation may promulgate rules as needed to implement the provisions of this act.

D. The Department of Wildlife Conservation may charge a one-time permit fee, which shall not exceed Five Hundred Dollars ($500.00), for citizens purchasing deer as a result of criteria established in the pilot program.

SECTION 2. This act shall become effective October 1, 2024.

Whitetails of Oklahoma is proud of their Legislators, Wildlife Agency, and Ag Department, for all working together to make Oklahoma leaders in the nation.

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WOL EXPO AND Crawfish BOIL

SPRING AUCTION AND BENEFIT

Trophy Breeder Bucks Showcase Book 2024 Application

Advertisers running ads in any of the 2024 Multi State Association Magazines will have the opportunity to place a single buck update photo in the D&K Design September Showcase Book.

Reservation for space and buck info will be due no later than August 14th, 2024. If you have an existing picture ready to go, that will also be due at that time. If you would like to send in a last minute photo of your buck, the cutoff date is Monday, September 2nd by 9am CST. Placement will be in order of ﬁrst come ﬁrst serve. Printing and mailing will start September 4th and be in hand between September 16th-20th. Just in time for semen sales getting ready for Breeding Season. These will be mailed to members of the 19 state associations we service. (More information will be mailed out to all current advertisers closer to the date)

Cost: $175.00 each 1/4 page ad or 4 for $650.00 (Pre-register and we will contact you for further information)

ADVOCATES FOR CWD RESEARCH FUNDING IN D.C.

This year, the NADeFA fly-in to Washington, D.C. happened between April 8-10th. Members from North Dakota, South Dakota, Missouri, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, Alabama, Michigan, and New York joined together to represent NADeFA in our nation’s capital. The group had the opportunity to talk to lawmakers about the key issues that affect them, specifically the adverse effects of chronic wasting disease (CWD), the need for a cure, and the importance of indemnity money for deer farmers and ranchers nation-wide.

The Congressional meetings were focused on two sets of asks for FY 2025. The first one, is for the Chronic Wasting Disease Research and Management Act to be funded at $15 million. For context, the bill was passed in the last Congress by efforts from Capitol Hill Consulting Group, in collaboration with the NADeFA fly-in, and was authorized $70 million a year for research and development efforts aimed at finding a cure. Of that amount, half will go to State Agriculture and Wildlife agencies to manage CWD activity within their states, while the other half will be used to improve the science surrounding the disease. However, NADeFA is asking for a fifth of the authorized dollars due to the limited funds in FY2025, and are seeking to use it as seed money to get the program started. The second request was for Congress to appropriate $18.5 million for the Animal and Plant Health Inspection (APHIS) to fund the Cervid Health Program, a $1 million increase over FY24, and ensure that indemnity money is set aside for those farms affected by CWD.

One of the main priorities for the visit this year was to characterize CWD as a national issue and emphasize that with increasing Congressional support focused on live testing and genetic resistance research efforts, an answer for this disease is on the horizon. Key meetings included Chairman of the House Agriculture Committee Congressman GT Thompson (R-PA), Congressman Brian Babin (R-TX), and Senator John Hoeven (R-ND). Additionally, NADeFA members were able to meet with APHIS Administrator Dr. Michael Watson in USDA and Taylor Schmitz from the Congressional Sportsman Foundation.

In their free time, the group had the opportunity to visit Arlington Cemetery and closed the successful trip with the yearly tradition of dinner at Fogo de Chao, an internationally-renowned Brazilian steakhouse. The impact of those who took time out of their schedules to come to D.C. is incredibly valued and noted. Fly-ins are an essential component in Congressional communication, especially when discussing issues affecting you and your community. The meetings have a proven record of securing policy changes as seen with the Chronic Wasting Disease Research and Management Act. It was a pleasure having NADeFA visit us here in D.C. last month and we are excited for next year’s trip!

By Caroline Herrera Capitol Hill Consulting

PREPARING DOES FOR BREEDING SEASON

ADVICE FROM ALABAMA

By: Gail Veley • Sponsored by The Alabama Deer Farmers Association

Successfully getting your does from the weaning pens to the breeding pens can be considered somewhat of a science, perfected through the course of experience combined with a little trial and error. “Breeding plans can get complicated with everything you need to consider such as CWD resistance, pedigrees and antlers,” explains Cameron Odom, owner of Five O’s Ranch, a 41-acre spread begun in 2015 in Citronelle, Alabama. At Five O’s Ranch, a farm which is currently home to 140 deer that is expecting close to 100 fawns in the spring, “we make every effort to make sure our does are as healthy as they can be and ready for breeding season.”

At the forefront of these preparations should be the constant monitoring for and prevention of EHD. The city of Citronelle, known since 1955 as the oil capital of Alabama and located 34 miles north of Mobile, has its fair share of annual rain and occasional hurricanes and along with that a higher prevalence of bacteria, midge flies and EHD.

“If a doe has had a bout of EHD close to breeding season, I highly recommend not putting her through the stress of A.I.,” Odom, 48, said. “At our farm, we would breed her naturally instead through live cover.”

To have the healthiest does, a diet high in quality hay, grain and minerals is recommended yearround, with an increase of those things during the winter and spring months as fawns are developing, born and raised (simultaneously along with future breeding plans and preparations.) “I feel this is something every farm should practice, along with regular wormings and vaccinations, to ensure their does have appropriate antibodies and that their body condition is good,” Odom said.

Body condition and overall health also factors into weaning fawns. “If one of your does becomes sick in August or September, it’s not recommended that you compound the situation by pulling fawns off,” Odom said. “Wait a couple weeks

or so until she is healthy again. Remember you want your does as strong and as healthy as they can get as breeding season approaches.”

A strong hunting economy, perpetuated by an abundance of state-wide preserves, means the demand for deer is high. In Alabama, a closed-border state, maintaining healthy deer herds is essential to the long-term success of every deer farm. “Essentially, good animal husbandry is the biggest key to success,” Odom shared. “Knowing your herd and laying eyes of them every day, even twice a day, is an important part of this. Be vigilant and aware. Vaccinate and utilize A.I. whenever you can to increase hearty genetic variety while being mindful of your end market. Is CWD resistance important? Antler size? Negative GEBV markers? Or all of the above?”

Odom feels everyone involved in The Alabama Deer Farmers Association strives hard to stay abreast of the latest industry trends, and to be compliant with the regulations set in place by The Alabama Department of Conservation and Natural Resources. “We have a great group of deer farmers operating well-run and well managed deer farms,” Odom said. “We are grateful for the opportunity to do what we love with the support of our spouses, friends, family and customers.”

MICHIGAN DEER FARMERS SHARE

IF I KNEW THEN WHAT I KNOW NOW, WHAT I MAY HAVE DONE

DIFFERENTLY STARTING MY DEER FARM

By: Gail Veley • Sponsored by the United Deer Farmers of Michigan

Alex Draper stood lost in his thoughts on a spring day in the early 1990’s.

As he studied a few very attractive bucks at the now late Ted Summer’s deer farm in northern Ohio with his friends Earl Souva and Gary Edwards, he was interested in making a purchase. “At that time deer farmers were selling does for $150 to $200 apiece,” Draper said. “Ted wanted $2,000 apiece for his doe fawns. He was a very knowledgeable guy, but that price was very high in our eyes.” Draper did not buy any deer that day from Summers, who would later produce Orange 2, Maxbo Ranger’s mother. “Looking back, it would have been a very good investment,” he said. “Her NADR number was 300. She had 11 offspring directly producing top animals.”

Good genetics, along with registries such as The Texas Deer Association (TDA) and The North American Deer Registry (NADR) “really allowed the industry to take off,” Draper, owner of DD Deer Farms in Clio, Michigan, explained. “You could see how the breedings were done for real not by ‘hear say’. More record keeping was being used and breeding crosses were being monitored to quantify the outcome. Today’s NADR numbers are in excess of 390,000 entries. My

lowest number is 499. Realizing the need to have good quality genetics and registered deer made a huge difference for me in my 35 years as a deer farmer.”

Realizing where his farm might lead him later, would have served Craig Frye of Spotted Acres in Battle Creek Michigan, well. What started as a small hobby farm in 2015 with his wife Karen for raising piebald deer, has grown into a full production enterprise along with acquiring partners, Anthony and Kelsey Klingler of Red Moon Whitetails. “Had I known where the deer industry was going to go, I would have gone to better genetics sooner, bred them differently right from the get-go and made better money quicker,” Frye shared. “I would have put in a handling facility sooner if I had only known then that piebalds would become just as valuable as whitetails.”

With the farm’s initial deer pen located right behind their house, looking back Frye would have laid the entire farm out totally different. “We put up our first pen without any intention of a handling facility,” he said. “It’s made it a little more challenging today to make everything flow to the handler and to get all the deer up in there.” Yet in realizing and rethinking certain aspects of starting their farm, the Frye’s will never regret getting started in the first place. “This has exceeded all of

our expectations. We now raise brown whitetails, too, and backed everything to piebalds this past breeding season. Hunters are becoming more interested in them and we are focusing on larger racks and bigger bodies.”

In focusing on sizable racks and substantial bodies, Draper feels the deer industry has gone through two or three major phases from merely using the best-looking bucks to the careful manipulation of good genetics to utilizing embryo transfer through A.I. The fourth or “next phase” is breeding for CWD resistance. “Most of the pioneers of the industry are long gone and new people have come into the industry and have taken their knowledge to build their herds,” he said. “They have seen the value of the super does and sires that the pioneers have created and validated, then taken them to a whole new level.”

“Knowing what I know today, the monies I have made, even more monies spent on this endeavor, I would have to think long and hard about getting into the deer business now,” Draper said. “But the 30-plus years of studying genetics, the many friendships of producers from across the county, the animals I have raised, and my family involvement has been worth every penny.”

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VENISON FAJITAS

The perfect sizzle for your early summer afternoons!

Ingredients

• 2 teaspoons seasoned salt

• ¼ teaspoon garlic salt

• ½ teaspoon black pepper

• ½ teaspoon cayenne pepper

• 1 teaspoon dried oregano

• 1 ½ pounds venison, cut into 2 inch strips

• 4 tablespoons vegetable oil

• 1 medium red bell pepper, cut into 2 inch strips

• 1 medium yellow bell pepper, cut into 2 inch strips

• 1 medium onion, cut into 1/2-inch wedges

• 12 fajita size flour tortillas, warmed

Instructions

1. Combine seasoned salt, garlic salt, black pepper, cayenne pepper, and oregano to make the fajita seasoning. Sprinkle two teaspoons of the seasoning over the sliced venison. Mix well, cover, and refrigerate for 30 minutes.

2. Heat 2 tablespoons of oil in a heavy frying pan. Cook bell peppers and onion until starting to soften, then remove. Pour in remaining oil, then cook venison until browned. Return pepper mixture to the pan, season with remaining fajita seasoning, and reheat. Served with the warmed tortillas.

Do you have a favorite recipe? Email it to deerassociations@gmail.com for a chance to be featured in one of our magazines!

Please list the ingredients, linstructions, and include a photo or two! (Recipes don’t need to include venison!)

HUNTERS – EMBRACING CAMARADERIE, NATURE AND CONSERVATION

By: Gail Veley • Sponsored by UDFOM

Kenny Brown fixed his rifle scope on the large cat high in a tree. Over the pounding of his own heart, piercing rush of adrenaline and frenzied barking of hounds, he could hear his guide telling him “Take your shot!! Take your shot now!” A twig snapped. He fired. And in an instant the hunter became the hunted as a 163-pound mountain lion came intentionally cascading down on top of the two men. As both jumped and struggled themselves out the way, the cat landed ten feet from them and raced off, it’s now obliterated and bloody paw leaving a trail. “Go! Go,” the guide called out. Brown, then 42, sprinted as fast as his legs could carry him, even falling, knocking the wind out of himself as he traversed back down through the steep snow at 7,000 feet, the same mountain he had just spent the better part of two hours crawling up. Panting hard, he once again found his target, now unable to tree itself yet still in full defense mode. As the dogs circled and barked, the cat lunged, grabbing one dog square on the head. Instantly, another dog bit the cat on the rump, causing it to let go and spin. Brown reacted in the microsecond it took for his finger to pull the trigger. And fired. The cat was down. Done.

Brown, now able to release every bottled-up emotion, cried. Cried from physical pain. From relief. From satisfaction. Satisfaction that was now interrupted by another urgent matter. Romey, the dog seized by the mountain lion, was bleeding badly and needed urgent vet care. “We’ve got to get him to the vet,” the guide said, with a tone far different than the one used earlier to order a gunshot. Brown jumped up, grabbed Romey and literally slid on his buttocks further down the side of the mountain, landing in a creek next to

a road, where vehicles were waiting. Romey survived. It was a welcomed ending to a hunt in St. Mary’s Idaho, that brought two treasures for Brown, a 92-pound gray timber wolf and a mountain lion. The mountain lion was found on a hunch. The timber wolf was found after spotting a moose kill.

“I’ve always been an avid hunter,” Brown said. “Growing up I did rabbit hunts and whitetail hunts and then took a liking to hunting the predator side. I always wanted to shoot a wolf and spent a week in Canada to no avail.” However, Brown’s dream would become reality on that St. Mary’s, Idaho hunt, preceding the mountain lion hunt. On the hunt “this wolf looked right through me. Right through my soul,” Brown recalled of the day he lay in wait, letting out an occasional answered howl that eventually found him able to take successful aim. “While I was in Canada, I learned how to call the wolves and let out a howl,” Brown shared. “I waited ten minutes and howled again. This time, I had a couple howl back at me. And when they wouldn’t howl back and didn’t howl back, I knew they were coming to check me out. They were coming.”

After Brown’s successful wolf harvest, fellow hunters at base camp helped gather up and bring the wolf back. While Brown has yet to ever hunt a wolf or mountain lion again, the memories remain etched in his soul. From the thrill and adrenaline to the camaraderie shared among hunters, this is what drives the sport. This is the very backbone of what hunting preserves provide to those who are also in search of their treasure, just the same way Brown, owner of PR Whitetails in Leslie, Michigan was.

“Recently I had the joy of being asked to help cook at Ultimate Whitetails for a large gathering of hunters,” Brown shared. “I’ve always enjoyed cooking. For three days I hung out with guides and got to see the sights. But there was one guy I’ll always remember. He shot a huge nontypical deer. As he’s telling the story he’s got tears in his eyes. I thought to myself ‘that’s awesome.’ This was his life dream. He was thrilled. Here’s an honest hardworking guy able to enjoy the thrill of the hunt and connect with others who share a love of nature. Opportunities like these might only come once in a lifetime. I’m grateful the deer industry can provide that.”

FREE business card ads for members

of Whitetails of Louisiana

If you would like your farm or business featured on our business card pages, email digital pdf file or scanned image (must be readable resolution) of your business card to the email address below.

This gives Whitetials of Louisiana members a way to reach out to one another for services and to buy or sell deer! There will be limited pages for these card spreads, first come first serve. The overflow would be placed in the next issue and cards will be rotated each quarter.

FLORIDA DEER FARMERS SHARE –IF I KNEW THEN WHAT I KNOW NOW, WHAT I MAY HAVE DONE DIFFERENTLY STARTING MY DEER FARM

By: Gail Veley • Sponsored by SETDA

Pre-thinking your strategy in raising deer is the most important thing a person can do when starting a deer farm, offers SETDA Vice President Bill Leffler, owner since 2017 of 107acre Two Base Down Farm in Morriston, Florida. “There are so many different questions to answer before you even begin to design your property or build your pens,” Leffler, 65, emphasized. “For example, are you going to A.I.? If so, how are you going to achieve this? How are you going to separate young deer from older ones? Are you going to cut buck horns? Are you going to bottle feed? How are going to protect bottle fed babies? Are you going to sell stockers or breeders? How are you going to get water and feed into your buck pens when they are in the rut? How many deer can your farm handle? What does the future hold for you and those deer? Are you willing to wait three or four years before you make a profit? Have someone experienced guide you through those questions before you design pens or build facilities and your deer arrive.”

Acquiring bred does is a common practice when deer farmers start up their farms. Leffler encourages everyone to follow this advice, and

recommends everyone buy the best genetics they can, even if it might mean only buying three or four does instead of 10 or 12. While Benny Wilkison, owner since 2011 of 10-acre Lil’ Oak Whitetails in Lawtey, Florida shares these sentiments, he would have taken it a step further. “When I bought my bred does, I promised the guy he could have all the buck fawns. I shouldn’t have done that,” he said. And while the deer on Wilkison’s farm today possess pedigrees with the likes of Back in

Black, Masterpiece, Have Mercy and Get Rhythm, he spent hard earned money and time phasing out his deer he acquired early on with inferior genetics. “I also wish I would have done A.I. earlier,” he said. “I spent the first three years doing live cover with average genetics. If I had to do over, I just would have bought really good does and kept everything. Good doe genetics are key.”

Although acquiring superior genetics and raising a superior breeding buck may be the goal of many deer farmers as well, Wilkison believes it might prove just as profitable to sell them. “The one thing I’ve learned is if someone offered me a reasonable price for a deer, I would take it. They die too fast,”

Wilkison, 67, explained. Keeping deer alive not only comes down to efficient pen design, but in raising deer that remain as calm as possible. At Leffler’s farm, he makes a practice out of pulling very select doe genetics to bottle feed, and appropriately mixing them when the time is right, with other non-bottlefed deer. “Many of our bottle-fed deer are so calm that they meet us at the gates, chase and follow golf carts and a few will curl up next to us. This will calm down an entire pen of both does or bucks. It makes a huge difference.”

Prior to having deer delivered, Leffler also strongly believes in fencing in as much of your perimeter as you possibly can, while also ensuring every pen and lane you construct is conducive for safe darting and that all shade cloth is hung securely. Building pens and lanes inside your perimeter fence, to (among other things) guide deer into a building with a handling chute, can mean additional safety from predators as well. “It can be very stressful and unsafe if you attempt to make changes after deer arrive,” he said. Pens should also be designed for separating your herds for various circumstances such as weaning buck and doe fawns, as well as introducing young buck fawns into a pen with older bucks or for holding other bucks back until they mature further. “These are things you need to really think about way up front,” Leffler added. “The significance in answering those initial questions thoroughly and from every possible angle can determine your success and ultimate ability to be profitable.”

YOUTH HUNTING

FUELING

PASSION FOR THE OUTDOORS

By: Gail Veley • Sponsored by PDFA

“Now whatever you do, don’t blow up Dad’s new decoy,” Glenn Dice affectionately told his young son Archer as they called in turkeys and waited during a spring 2021 hunt in their home state of Pennsylvania. When a big curious, striking gobbler checked out the decoy then stepped a few feet away, Archer, then 10, took his first shot ever as a hunter. Bingo. The victorious turkey hunt was followed by one in Florida this past spring and yet one more a month later back in Pennsylvania with another father and son. As the four eagerly waited in the cool predawn, competitive gobblers soon came running in, yet Archer appeared to hesitate. “Why aren’t you taking a shot?” Glenn whispered. “I don’t want to shoot your decoy,” Archer replied. Glenn quickly responded, “I don’t care about the decoy just shoot the darn turkey!” And with that, Archer’s aim was triumphant. He was the only one in the group to harvest anything that day.

The three bullet shells responsible for harvesting those three turkeys, each inscribed with Archer’s name, are kept on Glenn’s desk. He’s not only thrilled that his son shares one of his favorite pastimes, he’s also proud of his love of nature and the outdoors. Sharing that pride along with Glenn is Jeff Graham,

owner of Custom Pro Friction Calls and the man who taught Glenn to turkey hunt. After hearing about Archer’s first hunt, he surprised Glenn with a picture of Archer holding his first turkey, along with a personal inscription for Archer. In sharing a love of the outdoors with Archer and his other young son Lincoln, 9, Glenn, 53, feels “it’s paramount to appreciate nature and spend time with them outside. There’s not a better morning than being out in the woods. It’s my favorite time of day.”

Nationally, hunting is a multi-milliondollar industry responsible for substantial annual revenue. In 2021, revenue from hunting licenses was reported at $902,356,898, a $3 million increase from 2020. The top six states for issuing hunting licenses are typically Colorado at approximately $59 million followed by Texas at $47 million, Wisconsin at $41 million, Minnesota at $39 million, Pennsylvania at $37 million and Michigan also at $37 million. Even the tiny state of Rhode Island registered 26,690 hunters in 2021.

The most popular and number one animal to hunt is a whitetail deer followed by turkeys, elk and bear. While the interest in hunting is showing no signs of slowing down, without youth remaining interested in nature, hunting and the outdoors, subsequent decades may tell a different story. Vigilant deer farmers and preserve owners in Pennsylvania and in other states have a responsibility to ensure future generations embrace this same love, Glenn emphasized. “Being involved allows you to share your passion for the outdoors as well as collaborate on regulation development.

This enables us to enjoy year-round family-centered outdoor activities and to also be deer enthusiasts,” he said. “This involves working together as associations and staying abreast of current regulations and any proposed changes that affect us and standing up for our rights and practices of land ownership, management and stewardship.”

While Archer is poised to perpetuate this philosophy, he has yet to hunt whitetail, partially due to the fact that they are raised on the family farm, Glenn Dice Farms in Chambersburg. However, he has expressed an interest in trying. After they explore whitetail hunting sometime in the near future in Pennsylvania, Glenn and Archer may plan a Utah vacation to hunt mule deer. In the meantime, Glenn is working steadfast to maintain a constant presence in Washington on behalf of deer farmers, and to give back to an industry that has been so good to him and his family.

Glenn and Archer Dice

SUDOKU

The rules for sudoku are simple:

A 9x9 square must be filled in with numbers from 1-9 with no repeated numbers in each line, horizontally or vertically.

To challenge you more, there are 3x3 squares marked out in the grid, and each of these squares can’t have any repeat numbers either.

Ranch

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