What does can I look for that will sell nice next year with this breeder

Hollowroad Whitetails889101385561287



........ focus on Yellow 208's pedigree. Those lines are proven over many generations and line breeding with those genetics to see which produces the results you are looking for and then focusing on that is one way to maximize your investment, and I believe the best course of action.




Dead on thinking!

Travis,


 


I agree with Roger's suggestions.  It seems Flees lines are normally pretty popular and have produced, but I think you could get Patrick does at a good price.  I have a Rigid / Blazer doe that produced two really huge yearlings for me.  Blazer comes from the Patrick lines and sometimes when the market craves the newest hot buck on the block, you can get those old lines at a good price.  


 


Unless you are going to throw a LOT of money at it at once, it takes time.  Here is my thought on what you should do:  I would take your best 2 or 3 does and breed them with your best buck.  Then, you will see (in 1.5 yrs) what doe breeds best with your buck.  Then maybe do it again and confirm your first results.  You could then get rid of the ones that don't cross  best OR breed the same 2 or 3 to a different buck (maybe the biggest one you have besides Unleased) and see if that same doe has the biggest buck or if your new buck crosses better with a different doe.


 


This is just my breeding theory.  It will take time but you will see which buck cross best with certain does and you can go from there.  I know you said you don't want to AI now and that's fine but maybe in a couple years, bring one of your does to a farm near you that is AI'ing and bring in some real strong lines through AI.


 


I'm no expert but I'm just sharing my thoughts on the situation.  

(40,40,40); I know I am selling shooters, but, but why not sell big shooters? In my eyes that means 200-240" 2 yr olds! Half my doe won't do that.(Quote)


 


(40,40,40); If you have ANY does that are making 200-240 inch good looking stockers that the ranches want to buy at 2 years old then you should not have to buy anything. Very few farms can make this statement on a regular basis!

Freedom Whitetails889171385572875



I can't make that statement but why can't that be my goal ?




 


It can be and should your goal. You said half your does cant do 200-240 so i figured the other half could!   Which would be a good thing!

class="ipsBlockquote


 


If you don't mind me asking, what do you do with your doe fawns?



Great question. I also struggled with this for my first few years. Here is what I have decided to do about mine the last few years.


At my farm I try to breed for 5-10 buck fawns a year to be sold for shooters by age 2 or 3, figuring that 1-2 will die for whatever reason before ever being sold as shooters. To do that I must breed at least 10 does. That costs me almost 10 grand a year in feed when you figure my herd is always going to be around 40 or so animals a year when you figure breeder buck, breeder does, and 3 stocker pens.


Now when fawns start showing up in the spring and I meet my goal of buck fawns, I also unfortunately have a greater or equal amount of little does to deal with, I say unfortunate because I don't have the money of space for all. I will usually only hold over 1 or 2 doe fawns, and if I don't get rid of an adult by the next breeding year, then that doe fawn will not be added to anything but the freezer. Unfortunately all the remaining doe fawns are not useful to me because they are darn near impossible to sell and they cost me money to feed that will take years to get back out of them. I just simply cannot keep them all. I will keep them all until fall or winter, giving them a fantastic life in the meantime, then I will begin to harvest them. Just like we harvest our cows, and pigs,..ect. I know people don't like to talk about it, but its the life of a farmer. I passionately hunt deer in the wild, but i'll admit harvesting mine is a bit more emotional, but I know I gave them a good life and I am thankful for them even though they can't stick around for the long haul. Their meat is a blessing. 


If you have more than you care to eat, you can let some guys at work know you have some tasty venison to sell. You'll have No trouble getting rid of it. I give away and sell my doe fawns to others very year. Truth be told I get more money from a guy that buys a dead one to eat, then I get for a live one. And that guy doesn't even know he's eating venison of a doe capable of putting 250" bucks on the ground, lol.

Sorry to get off topic a bit with my last post. I just wanted offer advice on that because I also struggled with what to do with doe fawns when they didn't sell.


I know Travis's deer, and he does have a couple of does that are going to put some excellent bucks on the ground within a few years. Patients is the hardest part, lol.


I agree with mixing in daughters or granddaughters of good producing lines, that are already in Unleashed pedigree.


Travis already knows, but for those that don't I just wanted to say I personally have been buying up any Maxbo Xtreme daughters I can find locally. My main breeder is out of a Maxbo Xtreme daughter. In the short  time expirimenting with that line, it  is producing yearlings I could only dream about before. I can't wait to see my 2 year olds. Its all about finding what lines work for your needs.