Cove Creek Lodge :: Whitetail Breeding . Breeding Program

Cove Creek Lodge Trophy Whitetail Breeding Program

In the fall of 1999 we decided to raise whitetail deer after trying QDMA for a few years. Initially, we were only going to have a hunting preserve but, after talking to local deer farmers Robert Koontz and Jeff Houston we were convinced breeding pens and single sire breeding were the way to supply the preserve.

By March 2000 we had 9 - ¾ acre pens and a preserve fenced. We purchased bred does and fawns from Gsell, Pine Tree Trophy Whitetail, Acorn Acres, Russ Walk and Griffith Brothers. We still needed a breeder buck, Abbott, a two year old Magnum II son scoring 153" was chosen and we were up and running.

By 2002 it was obvious Abbott wasn't going to reach 200" + so we began planning AI for 2003. We settled on Marlin, Doc, Bart, Weatherby and Green 36. Our 03' program produced 1 Marlin son ( Ivanhoe 153" @ 1), 1 Doc son ( Royal Flush 200" @ 1 ), 1 Bart daughter and 1 Weatherby son.

We have kept most of our foundation does and have a concentration of double Patrick from Gsell. Other direct daughters in our herd include 50/50, Prince (Royal Flush's Dam), Magnum II, and Bart. We have kept 7 doe fawns out our 04" AI program, 1 Reno, 3 Doc and 3 Marlin. We also have 7 buck fawns from our 04" AI, 4 Doc sons and 3 Marlin sons.

Our current thinking (we are still learning) is that the Marlin (Geronimo) line crosses well with the Patrick line (Doc is most likely out of a Patrick doe). We plan to line breed with the objective of producing early developing genetics with large main frames and a preference for the more typical look.

Since 2000 we have had a complete handling facility and handle all our deer at least once a year. Last year we bottle-fed all our AI doe fawns however, for handling purposes we don't like our deer dog tame.

Although our hunting lodge is a lot of fun and profitable, my passion is for the animal husbandry end of the business. I hope to continue learning how to add vigor, good body conformation, large racks and predictability to our program. If you would like to talk deer please give me a call.

Whitetail Breeding Links:

Whitetail Breeding :: Breeding Program :: Bloodlines
Pedigree Charts :: Royal Flush :: Ivanhoe

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