Rare All-White Deer Selling Like Hotcakes

Rare All-White Deer Selling Like Hotcakes LIVESTOCK Exotic Animals 24-5-44 Looking for a pet that doesn't bark, climb screens, or have other annoying habits? Bill Noll Jr., Shippensburg, Penn., suggests you consider one of his all-white "whitetail" deer. Noll raises both the rare all-white whitetails and the more normal brown whitetails. He says he's perfected a method of raising them that results in very tame animals. "I sell a lot of them for pets. They'll follow you around like a dog." He treats deer like pets from birth. "I've found that if I bottle feed them rather than leaving them with their mothers, they get used to being handled, having people around, and are less likely to get wild when they're weaned," he says. "White deer are extremely rare and have been bred in captivity for so long that they tend to be much more tame than brown ones," he notes. "When people see the white ones, their first thought is that they're albinos, but they're not. Albinos are more susceptible to disease and usually don't survive long. White whitetails have brown eyes, just like those with brown hair." Another trick for keeping deer docile is to limit their space. "The bigger the area you give them, the wilder they seem to get," he says. He keeps his 23-head breeding herd on about 4 acres, all of which is surrounded with 9-ft. tall fencing. When Noll first started raising deer, he discovered that deer which have been domesticated for several generations make the best pets. And he was surprised when he came across his first all-white whitetail. "I also have piebald-colored whitetails, which are even more rare. They're spotted like an appaloosa horse," says Noll, noting that both the white and piebald colors breed true when like animals are crossed. He's sold out of young deer for this year, but is holding back young does to expand his herd for next year. At this point, he's not certain how many deer he'll have for sale next year, but says if people contact him, he'll put them in touch with other breeders. Brown fawn does sell for $400 weaned off the mother. Bottlefed white fawn does start at around $1,000. Contact: FARM SHOW Followup, Bill Noll, Jr., 8029 Molly Pitcher Hwy., Shippensburg, Penn. 17257 (ph 717-532-2108).

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