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Rural Industries Research & Development Corporation
Summary of full report
August 2001
RIRDC Publication No 01/107
RIRDC Project No UA 46A
Executive Summary
Weaning fallow deer in southern Australia usually coincides with low pasture availability and quality
The use of feed supplements or alternatives such as dryland lucerne are required. This project investigated the use of a range of feed supplements in autumn and the use of lucerne either in a cut-andcarry or grazing system on growth performance of weaner deer. The use of annual medic pasture in winter and early spring, combined with lucerne in late spring/early summer was also investigated
The aim of venison production systems is to cost-effectively raise weaners to reach target market weights by about 12 months of age, to avoid carrying animals over a second summer. Our main findings in this regards were:
• To maximise post-weaning growth rates, the best supplements to natural pasture in autumn were barley/lupin grain (70:30 mix) or barley grain alone. Fallow deer fed these supplements have outperformed those that received hay, silage, or cut-and-carry lucerne as supplements. All supplements in the research trials have been fed for 10-12 weeks immediately after weaning. The grain supplementation cost about $8/head ($0.10/head/day), but returns from heavier carcases in early summer exceeded this by at least twice as much
• The use of standing lucerne as an autumn feed source has shown great promise. Weaner deer performed as well, or better, on standing (ie, fresh) lucerne than on grain supplements
• The provision of grain supplements or access to fresh lucerne did not completely overcome slow rates of growth that characteristically occur during the first 2-4 weeks immediately post-weaning
Importantly, though, their provision did prevent weight loss during this critical period
• The improvement in early growth performance from supplementation continued after supplementation ended, resulting in improved live weight at the end of spring, and/or a reduction in the number of days required to reach a target weight
• Moderate growth rates were achieved on high quality annual pasture - in our case, Parragio medic - from mid-winter to mid-spring. On average, male fallow deer attained growth rates in excess of about 150 g/day, with females growing at less than 100 g/day. However, some individual animals grew at more than 200 g/day, indicating that there is scope to select for higher production in breeding programmes
• Under environmental conditions typical of that in southern Australia, weaner fallow deer did not compensate during spring for restricted growth during autumn, even when provided with an abundant supply of high-quality medic pasture. Therefore, it appears critical to ensure that early post-weaning growth is maximised through careful management of nutrition and weaning
• Perennial lucerne and annual pastures such as medic complement each other very well for venison production. Lucerne provides a source of green feed earlier (ie, autumn to early winter, depending on the rainfall pattern) and later in the season (ie, late spring - early summer) than annual pasture species. This effectively extends the period that a valuable source of green feed is available for grazing
• The trials have clearly shown that with cost-effective feed management, weaners can be turnedoff at the end of spring or early summer. A high proportion of weaner fallow deer (all males and most females) can reach acceptable target weights by early December, thus minimising the number of animals that need to be carried over a second summer and thereby reducing feed costs
However, the temporary halt to growth immediately after weaning could jeopardise the attainment of such targets in this time frame. This problem needs further investigation, along with means of optimising profit per hectare
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