News & Advice

Vetlife is currently undertaking a deer copper survey amongst our clients, via liver biopsies on farms, to gain an understanding of how well their deer are emerging from winter. The preliminary results are interesting with a wide range of results being reported. 36% of groups tested (ten) are in the deficient range (less than 100 […]

This is a summary of a cross-sectional survey conducted in 2024 by Vetlife Scientific on behalf of the Deer Industry New Zealand (DINZ) Background Following concerns from deer farmers about a novel severe form of lameness in adult stags[1] a national cross-sectional survey was developed by the authors of this study to estimate the prevalence […]

Hopefully, the weaning process has gone smoothly this year and, despite the recent dry conditions in many regions, with careful planning and feed management, you have still achieved some decent autumn growth rates in the fawns. As the day length has now decreased into winter, the growth potential of weaners has also decreased, so realistically […]

This year has been tough for deer farmers, with uncertainties over continued access to overseas export markets, mixed pricing messages and an increasingly fragmented market. Vetlife recognises the challenges facing its farming clients and is committed to supporting animal agriculture in New Zealand for the long haul. Part of this undertaking includes continuing to invest […]

Contrary to that in the North Island, the Central Otago sunshine has been relentless since the new year. Driving around you can see the effect this is having on feed quality throughout the countryside. For hinds coming up to the rut, this may be particularly problematic.   Mating will be a tough time, especially for hinds […]

The stag has only one job when it comes to the breeding herd, and that is to sire offspring. To perform at their best, stags need to have adequate body condition score, trace element status and be free of injuries, abnormalities and disease. Stags will put on considerable weight over the spring and early summer period […]

The feed requirement of stags during the roar has been less than half that of other times of the year. This is despite the huge energy investment that goes into protecting their patch and herding hinds (or fence pacing) as stags simply do very little eating over this time. Consequently they lose up to 30% […]

Yersiniosis is one of the main causes of death in four to eight-month-old deer, resulting in stock losses of 10 and 30% in unvaccinated herds. Stress is a major factor in making fawns vulnerable to yersiniosis around weaning. Stresses include: Separation from mother Cold, wet and windy weather Poor nutrition or sudden change of feed […]

The removal of velvet antler from farmed stags is justifiable for both human and animal safety as well as for economic reasons, but it must be performed with all due regard for animal welfare. If a working crush is not available, then this often requires the stags to be given a chemical restraint (sedative) by […]

Cervidae Oral, the long-awaited triple drench for deer, has arrived. Cervidae Oral is a triple combination drench containing: Moxidectin (a member of the macrocyclic lactone (ML) drench family), Oxfendazole (a member of the benzimidazole (white) drench family), and Levamisole. Because of the unique way deer process or metabolise actives in drench, Cervidae Oral has been […]

Velvet production is highly heritable, meaning that much of the velvet weight and characteristics achievable from your stags are due to their genetics – however, for them to express their genetic potential they require optimal feeding. Good feeding rewards good breeding. Of course, good feeding is important at all ages and stages to ensure target […]

Leptospirosis, or Lepto, can affect a wide variety of livestock including deer. There are three predominant strains or serovars of Leptospira bacteria that can affect deer: Leptospira Hardjo-bovis is the most common one, causing mild infections and sub-clinical disease. It does have the potential to cause significant production-limiting effects through reduced growth rates in weaner […]