Sika Deer... (AKA. Spotted Deer)

[Bleenie]

Does anyone here own any of these? can you tell me about them?

A friend of the family's wants to rehome some of theirs and we're considering taking some in. She said they are very respectful of their 5ft fence & they seem SO friendly, plus they're super cute and make cute noises!

we got some pics and will share later. thanks everyone

 

[spectrumranch]

There are several types of Sika, they range is size and coloration depending on the subspecies- most are a mixture of subspecies.

You should probably check if your state has any requirements for keeping & transferring ownership.

Our state requires that they are CWD monitored, TB tested, Bangs tested & in a 8 foot fence.

 

[SillyChicken]

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Please also keep in mind that many deer become agressive during breeding season. They deserve healthy respect regardless of how cute they sound. You may not be able to travel across state lines because of CWD (cronic wasting disease).

 

[Bleenie]

She said she sold some of the babies last year and had animal control & fish and wildlife come out because they thought they were blacktail or something but they checked everything out and said she was fine. She said they require no permits or anything like that & these deer have been as her family pets since she was little.

She had 3-4 of the males castrated this year by a local vet, she contacted a local wildlife place(NW Trek) about them and talked with them about the pros and cons of castrating them, but i guess she was just sick of all the babies and didn't want so many breeding anymore. She keeps hers all in a 5ft tall fence with just T-posts to hold it. When we were visiting them and petting them they would stand up on the fence but she says she's never had one get out before.

She did explain to us that they're very territorial, especially with other animals(like dogs and possum). They are super friendly with her and her family thoguh, i imagine because they've had them so long. She also told us about their behavior during breeding season, I think that was also part of why she had some of the males 'fixed'. She wasn't able to tell me ages on some of the older males because afetr they were castrated their antlers came back as just a long curved spike, like Antelope.

 

[spectrumranch]

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Unless all the males are casturated, casturating only a few will not solve any breeding problems. One male can still breed all the females in the pen.

 

[ShrekDawg]

awww, they sound so cute, i think i saw them once on Animal Planet's "Growing Up..." series, I think it was Growing Up Sitka Deer or something like that, it was in like Alaska or something i think and they took in an orphan, i think the mother had been eaten by a bear or something, and then later when the deer had become a little bit older they took in another orphan and raised him too as a companion for the other one and because he was an orphan as well and i think the Department of Fisheries and Wildlife (or whatever its called) had told them about them and dropped the babies off there, so they took them in and i think they might have later released them or they had a wildlife education/"zoo" thing there so they stayed but anyways, sorry to ramble, but they are so cute and I didnt know you could have them as pets, theyre adorable though. congrats!

 

[spectrumranch]

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Sika and Sitka are two different species.

 

[ShrekDawg]

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Sika and Sitka are two different species.

ohhh, i didnt know that, sorry... they just sound so similar, guess i should have looked it up or something, sorry...

 

[spectrumranch]

ohhh, i didnt know that, sorry... they just sound so similar, guess i should have looked it up or something, sorry...

Nothing to be sorry about! I just wanted people to know that they are different species. Sitka deer are North American subspecies of the Mule deer.

Sika deer are from Asia, but have been introduced into the wild in other parts of the world.​

 

[ShrekDawg]

Quote:
Nothing to be sorry about! I just wanted people to know that they are different species. Sitka deer are North American subspecies of the Mule deer.

Sika deer are from Asia, but have been introduced into the wild in other parts of the world.

ohhh, that makes sense! thanks!