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Troy Griffith, deer stock manager at Pāmu Mararoa, reported on a new strategy last year where they kept their weaner winter crop mobs of about 400 together right through until they began to be drafted off for the works and after, rather than re-sorting them by weight when they came off crop onto grass.

As the tops from a mob went off to the works, the residual deer were not “boxed” with other mobs. He said this created more mobs than they otherwise would have, but maintaining the stable social structure right through seemed to give growth advantages by reducing stress. Average growth rates were:

• Early September: 230g/day
• September average: 290–325g/day
• Mid–late October: 480g/day