Antlers aren’t the only thing deer shed.
QUESTION: I’ve been scouting a new property for turkeys this spring and deer hunting this fall and have been finding clumps of deer hair. I search the area but haven’t found any bodies. I’m wondering if deer get mange and if this could infect the herd.
ANSWER: Mange is transmitted by Demodex mites, and as deer sometimes serve as a host to these mites, they can contract mange. However, most whitetails with healthy immune systems can harbor these parasites without developing severe clinical symptoms.
According to the Field Manual of Wildlife Diseases in the Southeastern United States, deer mange is only a problem for a few rare individuals but is generally not a herd problem. Even better news, deer begin shedding their coat of dense, hollow winter hair every spring, so it’s quite possible that’s what you’re observing. Unless you start finding carcasses, you probably have little to be concerned about.
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