can some one help

Need help darting a fawn. We only have 2cc darts, the fawn maybe weighs 20lbs. What should we use, how much and should we fill the dart with saline??

do not dart with a 2cc dart. get a 1/2 cc dart and a blow gun.

I think if it was me i would try to trap and catch the fawn in some manner.Trying to dart the fawn will be trickey enough and then to have to turn the gun up enough to launch a 2cc dart with the power needed could very well be to much presure for the fawn.Get your hands on him and then syringe him. Mabey a few people could corner it and use a fishing net or blanket.Anything it takes to not have to dart it if possible.

Shan i would advise not to dart that fawn if at all possible !! If you have to then use a 1/2 cc dart with a 1/2 inch needle and use a blow gun . The best way is like noted above . Trap the fawn in some manner and have someone hold it while you take care of the doctoring . You can catch and hold a 20 # fawn so don`t risk an injury from darting if you don`t have to . Most likely .2 cc should put this fawn down if it`s not too worked up. Good luck .

We NEVER dart any cervid under 25-30 pounds. The odds are not in your favor on any deer that small/

Shan,



I have darted several fawns in the past with no negative results. I would use a half cc or one cc dart. What symptoms does the fawn have that it needs to be treated? I use sterile water to fill the dart full.

How big is your pen where you need to get your fawn captured? Can you walk it in a short time? Once I had a fawn that was born when I was gone for a week, realized there was one that had been born and needed to be tagged. I found out that I could walk the grid of the pen until I found the fawn (at night, in total darkness). I was using a spotlight and he kept still as if I was gigging frogs. I didn't have anything else, so I took off my shirt when I had the light on him and when I was about 6' away. I intentionally threw the shirt right over his head and it landed on the far side of him, and he bolted right for me and I caught him.

A dip net works well.

Deerchaser said:

do not dart with a 2cc dart. get a 1/2 cc dart and a blow gun.

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Brett is correct if you have no other choice but to dart.

A big THANK YOU to everyone that has posted. When I posted we were trying to figure out the best thing to do for the fawn ( we have yet to dart the fawn thank goodness!) I guess I should explain the situation a little more. The buck fawn was left on his mom, and he is wild as can be. we went out to the pen this evening and found the mother dead. You can't get in the pen without the fawn running into the fence repeatedly! We are at a stand still on what to do for the fawn. I don't think there is anyway we could get in the pen without him hurting himself. Option #1 Dart and try to bring him in and start bottle feeding. (but we are concerned if we do that we may stress him out to bad) Option #2 Leave the fawn in the pen with the other doe that is in there (but we believe she has dried up milk wise due to not having her fawns with her bc we are bottle feeding them) Option #3 Try to put him with the does that we are imprinting their fawns. We are sick not knowing what would be the best to do so any help would be great. Again THANK YOU so much for the input. (the fawn is only about a month old)

Just any mesh along the fence to form a funnel would work, and walk it towards the funnel in the dark. I have to chuckle when someone says theyve done it with no problems so far. No offense meant, but its the time that DOESNT work well that will suck. Read about people blowing darts (the whole dart) right into the animals tender body, and you might heed Scotts very experienced advice. Any fawn I couldnt catch on time, Id just wait till fall and run through the system, personally. Good luck whichever way you decide.

Shan, I think we both posted at the same time, lol...I personally have never had much luck getting a mother fed fawn to a bottle at that age. My limited experience that way was with orphans, something I no longer mess with, because it fails so often. I think youre on the right track with your own judgement allowing it to try to nurse off another mother. I hope its a success for you!

NYBill said:

Shan, I think we both posted at the same time, lol...I personally have never had much luck getting a mother fed fawn to a bottle at that age. My limited experience that way was with orphans, something I no longer mess with, because it fails so often. I think youre on the right track with your own judgement allowing it to try to nurse off another mother. I hope its a success for you!

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LOL thanks bill. We are very "fresh" in this business and this is our first year having "known" fawns. It's a climax buck fawn and we would really like to try and save him. TALK about stress. Keep your fingers crossed for us!

Shan, I would think your best bet at that age is put him in a pen with as many other does and fawns and he should be able to steal milk off the other does at that age. I have a dozen does in each pen and the fawns are always sucking from different does other then there own mothers and most will let them. Make sure you also have pellets out and plenty of grass and he'll probably be fine. Trying to bottle feed him this old would most likely never work. I'm sure others on here have alot more experience and may have a better plan. Best of luck.

Keep us posted how it turns out.

Considering the latest info you have supplied you are in a bad spot no doubt. SDBIGBUCKS has most likely given you the best advice so far then. Open the pen up to where there are the most mothers and fawns and hope he steals a drink here and there. Maybe he survives.



As to blowing a whole dart into the body of a deer goes. Common sense must always be used during darting. I don't care what age the deer is a dart can be shot into the body of the deer if common sense isn't used.

However actually blow darting I would like to see the person who has that much wind in there lungs to blow a dart (the whole dart) into a deers body.



But the info you have provided tells me blow darting would be very hard unless your well concealed in a blind, darting with a powered gun is not a good option, and frankly catching the fawn and trying to bottle feed it at a month old is a very unlikely success story. Best hope that he can steal some milk from other does if you have that as an option. But being as your new to the biz I would guess you don't have other pens of deer to let him into.

Tough spot indeed.

Lesson learned that tame does are a key aspect of raising deer with good success and good herd health management.

Good luck

have you tried putting the milk in a bowl? maby it will lap it up .same as lapping water.

If the fawn does not graph to a doe naturally, you need to catch it and using some fecal matter from one of the lactating does in your pen, smear it on the hind quarters and top of the fawns head. The doe will familiar enough with her own scent to think the fawn is hers. Then again, a bird in the hand is worth 2 in the bushm so if you catch the fawn, you may want to place him in a confined area and begin the bottle feeding process.

Roger, you and I both know how darting often goes! BTW, how the heck have you been? Oh and yes Shan, Im still wishing you the best!!!

Ok Shan food for thought. i have seen this done with a 4 week old fawn. Not sure if your feeding a milk replacer or not ? Since the fawn is probably picking at grain by now so if your feeding a replace they mixing the replacer dry with a pelleted feed or whatever your feeding that they are picking at . If no other mother will let it join in give this a try . i`ve seen it work .