I live in Arkansas, a state that has one of the most liberal regulations regarding captive wildlife. You can legally take up to six deer from the wild and keep them. We have four captive White-tail bucks. My husband is a taxidermist; he mostly does deer. We bought Outlaw as a yearling; he is now four-years-old. We never expected Outlaw to be a big buck; we bought him because he is so tame. Greg can closely observe him, using the characteristics in a live deer to produce more lifelike characteristics in his mounts. Cherokee and Joey are yearlings. A neighbor found Cherokee in his driveway and believing him to have been abandoned, brought him to me. We named him Cherokee because he was found near the Trail of Tears. His umbilical cord was dry but still attached when we took him into our home. Joey’s mother was killed by wild dogs and another family rescued him. He was given to me when he was about six-weeks-old. When first contacted about taking the little fawn, I asked if it was a buck or a doe and was told "they didn’t know" because "they didn’t know how to tell". We named him Joey because for his first weeks in captivity, nobody knew if he was a joey or a sheila! Rocky is our newest fawn; he is about six-weeks-old. He was found in a local yard, thought to be abandoned and taken in. Once taken, a White-tail cannot be returned to the wild unless done so by a recognized rehabilitator.

In raising these deer, I have learned more than I have learned in a lifetime of hunting them. In captivity, when hand-raised, they are more affectionate than a dog. There are vocalizations they make that I would not have associated with a deer. In the rut, they can go from the attitude of a pet to a raging wild animal in the blink of an eye.

I do not encourage anyone to take a fawn from the wild. If you see one alone, chances are mama is somewhere and baby should be left alone. Some states outright forbid the taking of wild animals into captivity. A fawn is very fragile and is better off with its mother, although a large percentage born do not survive. I have lost two fawns and although I know I tried to save them, it hurt so badly when they died.

In addition to being able to observe them close up, having them as pets is rewarding because they are so affectionate. When in velvet or after shedding, our mature buck will follow me like a puppy and will lick me from head to toe. I do not go in the fence with them when they are in hard horn. I’ve seen Outlaw go from licking me through the fence to trying to tear through the fence to get to me in a split second. They are dangerous and must be treated with respect!

One of the most exciting things about having deer is watching the antler growth! You can look at the big operations of White-tail farmers and see their genetics and pedigrees but with my boys, I don’t have a clue what their ancestry is. Outlaw’s was a spike his first year; Cherokee looks like a goat, he injured his left antler and it looks like a corkscrew; and Joey is a five-point and still growing. Since his first spindly spikes, Outlaw has only been a six-point. Already this year, he’s showing seven, the same frame as last year, heavier, wider and with a kicker coming off his right antler.

I think more than anything else, these boys have shown me the importance of letting young bucks walk come November if you want to contribute to the quality of your bucks. Arkansas is one of the many states with an antler point restriction (three on one side). I have never been a trophy hunter and have taken my share of young bucks - watching my deer grow has really made me wonder what some of those would have become had they had the opportunity to reach maturity.

I would encourage you to think twice in upcoming seasons before pulling the trigger; take only mature bucks, those big boys with sway backs and full bodies. You will probably never know what they will turn out to be, but there’s a chance that if he looks good this year, he’ll be even better next year.