Fallow Deer
Fallow are not native to Great Britain but have been here a long time. Introduced by the Normans in the 10th century for hunting they are today found throughout England, often in traditional deer parks but also in the wild, where they have established themselves often as escapees from deer parks.
In Scotland there are fewer Fallow, probably because of the harsher climate. The most notable population in the north is probably the Fallow found in the wild around Dunkeld.
There is significant variation in the coat colour and markings of Fallow. Menal, common, melanistic and white are the four types. We have all of these in our herd with the pretty menal being the most common.
Our original Fallow came from a small deer farm in Hertfordshire in the mid 1990’s. They adapted well to their new Highland environment and with extra shelter and food in the winter they survive the longer, harder winters.
They fawn in June, hiding their fawns for the first few days before they are strong enough to run with the herd. The fawns grow quickly and self wean in the autumn. The bucks and does run together all year round with the rutting season in October.
They are by nature quite timid and flighty although in the winter months hunger gets the better of them and then they come in close by looking for their daily feed. We have experimented with splitting the fawns off from the adults for the winter and keeping them closer to the farm for extra feeding. This has been quite successful and has certainly made the younger animals more tolerant of our presence.
As long as you have good deer fences, 6 feet high netting wire then Fallow deer are very easy to keep. They thrive on good grassland, require no feeding if there is sufficient grass in the summer and only supplementary feeding in the winter to keep their condition. Small groups of Fallow can become relatively tame over a period of time. They are very “pretty” deer to watch and enjoy.
We often sell Fallow deer for breeding to similar establishments like ourselves. We have a system where we can live catch our Fallow and transfer them into a livestock box for transportation. If handled in quiet, darkened conditions Fallow are very quiet and actually travel very well.
The best time of year for us to catch and sell our fallow is during the winter months from November to April.
