1. Why have you bottle-fed fawns?
The cost of deer was much greater when we started so it was a two-fold
reason that we started bottle-feeding. First was our desire to have a calm,
manageable herd, but also to reduce the death loss in our fawn crop.

2.a) When did you first begin bottle-feeding?
In 2000, the very first deer that came to our farm was attached to a
bottle. It was a one month old buck fawn we purchased from Len & Suzanne
Romanuik. ³ Bobby² turned out to be a 105² yearling, 135² two year old that
we bred to six does last fall.

2.b) What is the greatest number of fawns you have bottle-fed at one time?
The most fawns we have fed at one time is 12, with both Sharon and
myself working fulltime jobs. Our whole family helps with feeding, and the
kids (Justin 15 , Kirsten 14 , Kaila 11 ) are quite capable of feeding all
on their own.

2.c) How many deer (estimate) have you bottle-fed over the years?
We have bottle fed 24 deer on our farm.

3. In preparing to bottle-feed, what equipment/ preparations are needed
before beginning?
a) Equipment: We use bottles from the Sheep Development Board (500ml).
They work well with newborns right up until weaning. For mixing formula we
use 4 liter salad dressing jugs with a built in handle. When mixing, add
your hot water and powder, shake until mixed, then add the rest of the
water.

b) Prepare ahead of time: we purchase eartags, (farm & Sk.), disposable
gloves , wet wipes, paper towel, antibiotics , syringes , colostrum ,
Betadine , hydrogen peroxide and lots of coffee (thatıs for me).


4. What replacer do you use?
We use PMT lamb formula, but we have also used the ungulate formula. We
find no difference in results between the two, but the cost of lamb formula
is much less and although the texture of the lamb formula is coarser it is
easier to mix.

5. Do you use a colostrum replacer to start fawns?
Yes, we mix 400ml (1/2 water , 1/4 formula , 1/4 colostrum ). We feed this
to each fawn until itıs gone (usually about 12 hours).

6. How old are fawns when removed from doe?
As soon as we can, sometime it is just a few minutes, but never more
than ten hours.

7. Where do you bottle-feed?
We start them in the house using cardboard crates, but also let them
move around the house where they find their own ³safe place ³ in and around
the furniture. We then move them to a 20ı x 30ı barn with cement floor that
we built especially for the purpose of bottle-feeding. The layout of the
barn has 5ı x 6ı pens, which accommodate four fawns during feeding.

8. Any special modifications to fawn pens?
The fawn pen is a 150ı x 150ı pen with 8ı fence. Mature trees make up
1/3 of the pen. It is seeded to alfalfa and has snow fence tie-wrapped to
the game fence to act as a visual barrier.




9. How often do you bottle-feed? Amount fed? Weaning?
We start out at 150ml five times a-day, starting at 6am, 10am, 2pm, 6pm,
10pm. At about two weeks we move to 250ml four times a day, then increase
amounts until we are feeding 500ml 4xıs by the first week of July. We feed
this amount until the second week of August, then start cutting amounts,
then numbers of feedings, with a target of the second week of September for
a weaning date. We try to stay within the target of 100 days.

10. Can you overfeed a fawn?
Yes , if the fawns are small (6 lbs or less). Most of our fawns have
been in the 9 to 11 lb range and just need to eat more, which makes it
easier to get them all on the same program.

11. Healthy b.m.ıs?
If they are a bit loose, we use strawberry yogurt mixed into their
bottles. It helps to stiffen them up.

12. How is fawn defecation a factor in bottle-feeding?
If they havenıt had a BM in their second day, even with extreme
stimulation, we will use an enema tube and glycerine which works well, and
fast (use extreme caution).

13. How do you get newborns to take the bottle?
Some newborns can be really difficult to feed. Stroking their throat, or
stimulating a BM will usually do the trick, but sometimes just squeezing the
bottle and inducing the ³gag reflex² is your last resort. We donıt force
them too much because their tummy usually gets the better of them by the
next feeding time.

14. How important is sterilization? What is your process?
This is not one of our major concerns. We rinse the bottles after each
use and bleach them about once a week, because the only thing that occurs
more often than a fawn licking another one is the farm dog licking himself.

15. When do you introduce water and your pelletted ration? Dirt?
We put containers of dirt in the barn from the beginning. We will also
hand feed about two teaspoons to each newborn to ³get their gut working². We
put out water at about one week. We like to control their liquid intake so
it is easier to see if there are any BM problems. Pelletted feed is given in
week two. Then we use a 15% (pro.) pea and lentil based ration.

16. Importance of record keeping?
We keep some records. We always weigh the fawns at birth and by picking
them up as quickly as possible, we have been able to know the dam without
having to do any DNA. We do keep a temporary record of antibiotics given,
but donıt see this as necessary to keep in the long term.

17. Do you see any correlation b/w bottle-feds and smaller size?
No, but I have seen a correlation of genetics. We have one doe that
gives us the largest fawns every year (twin 11 pounders ), and one doe that
gives us one large and one considerably smaller (11 lb vs 5 lb ). When it
comes out in the wash, we have yearlings that weigh over 200 lbs and some
that struggle to get to 130 lbs soaking wet.

18. Danger signs to be aware of?
The problem we see the most is lump-jaw (Necrobacillosis). This is
usually easy to treat if caught early. A lump on the jaw is quite
noticeable, but is more difficult to spot on the inside of the mouth. The
only outward sign is excessive slobbering and unwillingness to eat. This
usually occurs behind the front teeth on the bottom jaw and can cause loss
of teeth and possibly jaw bone damage if not caught early. This type of
abscess is open and we clean them daily by aspirating them with a needleless
syringe filled with hydrogen peroxide 25ml ( 3%) , keeping their head tipped
down to prevent ingestion. We also keep any sick animals separate from the
rest to prevent cross contamination.

19. Any other problems encountered with your bottle-feds?
To keep them safe on our farm, we use two Great Pyrenees livestock
protection dogs, which have bonded to our deer just like any other
livestock.

20. Is it necessary for the same person to bottle-feed all the time?
No, we like to have as many different people introduced to the fawns and
adult deer as possible. If the deer are bonded to only one person or used to
seeing very few people, we find they are harder to manage when we need to
handle them. We have had as many as twelve people at one time in our buck
pen and the deer were not concerned at all with having more people to walk
around to get to their food and were just as happy to get their ears or chin
scratched by someone else.

21. Do you think large numbers, bottle-fed together, lessens ³tameness²?
No, all deer have their own character. In fact thatıs how a lot of them
get their names. Some deer bond to people as if they see no difference
between you and other deer. I would say you can see more of a genetic
relationship in the offspring of some does that are just much more ³hyper²
than others.

22. What challenges do you face when bottle-feeding greater numbers of
fawns?
When it comes to numbers, the difference between feeding 5 and 10 is not
that much in time. This past year, when we fed 12 fawns, I could mix, feed
and clean up in about 20 minutes .We plan to bottle-feed 35 to 40 fawns this
year. Each feeding should take around 1 hour.

23. Most important tip for beginning bottle-feeders?
Start small. Get all the information you can. Most of this will come
from other people and from experience. We were fortunate to find a couple of
deer farming families who were willing to put up with us, and I think in
time, we have been able to return the favour with knowledge we have gained
from our experience.

24. The most difficult part and the best parts of bottle-feeding?
Letıs start with the best part first. It is impossible not to fall in
love with these little creatures as they depend on you for their food,
protection, and well-being. The hardest part is, although we have not lost
any fawns to disease, I have had to euthanize two when they sustained
irreparable injuries.

25. Do you bottle-feed buck fawns as well?
Yes, we do feed all our buck fawns as well, with full knowledge that in
the future we will have to cut horns every year and be prepared to treat
them differently from the beginning of the rut until their buttons fall off.

26. Would you recommend bottle-feeding to others? Why/why not?
Yes, I would recommend bottle-feeding, if for no other reason than
material benefit, (ie/ dollars in your pocket). Increased survival rates of
bottle-fed fawns soon outweigh the cost of bottle-feeding. Besides that,
what price can you put on the survival of your 185² Typ. breeder that gets
pneumonia at age 5? You can walk him into your facility and give him some
antibiotics or find him dead in the pasture because you havenıt seen him for
5 or 6 days. Sometimes with a little hard work you can have your cake and
eat it too!

By: Curtis Lloyd (Silver Stream Whitetails)
(questions compiled by Deer Tracking)